Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney- Turnabout Of The Night
by DeraldSny
Summary: It's back to Lastation as K-Sha requests Rei's help in defending a friend of hers... A 'vampire hunter' who apparently slew the wrong man! But how can Rei defend this woman in a court where logic rules, when seemingly dealing with the supernatural?
1. Prologue

Time for another Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney case!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Prologue

"Halt! You cannot escape me, creature of the night!"

A morning-star whip lashed out, impacting on a brick wall, a dark figure fleeing down the dark alley. The whip's wielder pursued with all due speed, emerging onto the open street, looking about... Seeing something shift in the distance, the morning-star lashed out again- and this time found its target, the figure crying out in pain before crumpling to the ground.

The whip-wielder cautiously approached the fallen figure, the moon peeking from behind the clouds, revealing a man with white hair dressed in a suit with a cape, blood running down his cheek from where the morning-star had impacted. The other person kneeled down to check the man, opening his lips-

-but there were no sharp fangs, only normal canines.

The hunter gasped in shock upon realizing that this was _not_ the vampire... "Oh no... what have I done?!"

_November 12, 9:38 AM_

_Samson & Co. Law Offices_

Rei Ryghts yawned as she leaned back in her chair, having finished all her paperwork, resisting the urge to put her feet up on the desk. (Business has been awfully slow this week... Seems the toughest thing I've been doing every workday is cleaning the toilet...) At least she didn't having to worry about paying her bills yet, despite the lack of work and thus income... thanks to her acting role in The Revengers movie, she now had a 'rainy day' fund of sorts to cover her in case legal work lapsed... (I'm so glad Mr. Samson helped me invest that money properly...)

Just then, the door to Bartholomew's office opened, the man himself stepping out. "Rei, could you come in my office? I just got a call over the holo-screen..."

"Huh?" Rei blinked as she got up from her chair. "Wh-what's g-going on, Mr. Samson?" Following her boss through the door, she was surprised to see a familiar face on the screen... "L-Lady Noire?!"

It was indeed Lastation's CPU, a familiar girl in a red and gold school uniform at her side. "Hello, Rei. I believe you remember K-Sha?"

"Hello!" the Gold Third member waved.

"H-hello again," Rei bowed briefly. "I-is K-Sha in t-trouble again...?"

"Not me," the former mercenary shook her head. "A friend of mine. She was a fellow member of the Order- one of the few that I got along with decently."

"She's been accused of murdering the CFO of a sunscreen manufacturer," Noire clarified. "For her part, she admits she struck the victim, but insists that he was still breathing when she left him."

"I see," Rei nodded. "N-not th-that I d-don't want t-to take on th-this case, b-but d-doesn't Lastation have any d-decent lawyers?"

"I did try contacting a few, but once they heard the circumstances, they either refused outright or started laughing," Noire stated.

"L-laughing?!"

"But you'll take this case seriously, right?!" K-Sha jumped in.

"O-of course I will!" the horned lawyer agreed. "B-but it might t-take me a while t-to fly t-to Lastation..."

"Already got it covered," Noire said. At that moment, someone entered the office from behind Rei. "Ah, good timing, Uni."

"Huh?!" Rei whipped around to see Black Sister, who promptly reverted to her human form of Uni.

"Um, hi," the CPU Candidate waved half-heartedly. "Noire sent me to come pick you up and take you back to Lastation City."

"There's no need to rush," the twin-tailed goddess assured. "I convinced the court not to start the trial until we got proper representation for K-Sha's friend. But try not to drag your feet either, got it?!"

"Y-yes, ma'am!" Rei nodded.

"We'll tell you more about the case when you get here," K-Sha added. "See you soon!" With that, the connection was cut off.

"Um, I hope you don't mind us borrowing Rei for a few days," Uni addressed Bartholomew.

"It's fine," the large man shrugged. "Business has actually been somewhat slow this month... and I think Rei could do with a change of scenery, anyway." A rumbling was then heard. "That being said, Miss Uni, you probably should grab a bite to eat so you have the energy to fly Rei back to Lastation."

Uni sweat-dropped and blushed slightly at this. "Um, yeah, good idea... do you know anyplace nearby, Rei?"

"There's a ramen shop a few blocks down," the horned lawyer offered. "B-but why is it th-that th-the other lawyers in Lastation were l-laughing at th-this c-case?"

"Well..." Uni bit her lip briefly. "K-Sha's friend apparently hunts 'creatures of the night'... the reason she clobbered the victim is because she thought he was a vampire!"

"V-_vampire?!"_ Rei's eyes shrunk to circles. (What have I just gotten myself into...?!)

_*To be continued...*_


	2. Investigation, Day 1

And now the case begins in earnest!

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Investigation- Day 1

_November 12_

_Detention Center_

_Visitor's Room_

K-Sha had been waiting for Rei and Uni when they touched down at the Basilicom, taking on the task of escorting the lawyer to the prison where her friend was being held while the goddess got some much-needed rest. So now here they sat, waiting for the vampire hunter to be escorted from her cell...

"Don't be too off-put by her," K-Sha advised. "She can be a bit gruff, but her heart's in the right place. It took me a while to get used to her in the Order, but she seemed to genuinely care for me unlike the others, who just saw me as a fellow mercenary- tolerated but not trusted."

"B-but she t-trusted you?" Rei guessed.

"And vice versa," the schoolgirl confirmed. Just then, a door opened on the opposite side of the glass. "Oh, here she comes..."

Rei blinked at the sight. At first glance, she would have mistaken her client for a male barbarian, save her C-cup size bust. She was dressed in brown leather armor that covered her chest and torso, with a short, tattered skirt that showed off her quite well-toned legs. She also wore metal gauntlets on her forearms and a headband with a small dark red jewel set in the center. She had long blond hair with red highlights that grew past her shoulders. Her face was average, not cute nor ugly, her eyes a cold, cobalt blue as stared at her visitors.

"K-Sha. So good of you to come here." Her voice was indeed low and gruff, like a soldier who had seen several battles. "And who might your companion be?"

"She's going to be your legal representation in court," K-Sha explained. "Miss Rei, meet Simone Rondo, codename Castlevania. Simone, this is Rei Ryghts, attorney-at-law and former final boss."

"D-did you have to t-tell her th-that last part?!" Rei groaned, ducking her head.

"...I see," Simone said after a moment. "Miss Ryghts, this might sound odd, but I wish for you to look into my eyes." As an afterthought, she added, "Don't worry about not blinking."

"Um, okay..." Rei grunted nervously, locking her eyes with the hunter's cobalt orbs.

After a few terse seconds of staring, Simone nodded in apparent satisfaction. "...The eyes are the window to the soul, and I can see no malice in yours. Very well. If K-Sha trusts you, then I shall put my trust in you as well."

"Um, th-thank you," the lawyer nodded in relief.

"She does that with almost everyone," K-Sha stated. "Don't worry too much about it. Anyway, Simone, could you please tell Miss Rei what happened, from your perspective?"

"As you wish," Simone agreed. "It was just past midnight. I was scouring the streets of Lastation City, searching for creatures of the night, when I suddenly detected a vampire in the area. Please don't laugh."

"I'm not laughing," Rei shook her head. "Go on."

"Okay. Anyway, I pursued the vampire through an alley and came out into a small parking lot. I saw what I believed to be the vampire, and attacked with my Combat Cross- it's like a morning-star whip- and he crumpled to the ground. I thought it was strange- most vampires aren't felled in one hit- so I went over to check on the man, only to discover he was not my quarry. I must stress that he was wounded, but still breathing- my strike had merely rendered him unconscious."

"Right," the lawyer nodded.

"So then, after I checked his pulse," Simone continued, "I left him and continued my pursuit of the vampire... but to no avail- the fiend had eluded me. So I retired to my camp until morning... When I saw on the news that the same man had been beaten to death, I promptly went to the authorities to tell them what happened... to make a long story short, they got the wrong idea, and so here I am."

"Hmmm..." Rei closed her eyes in thought. "I'll be frank with you, Miss Rondo... this case isn't going to be easy. After all, you already admitted to striking the victim... most people will immediately make the jump to 'you didn't stop hitting him'..."

"My Combat Cross was confiscated upon my arrest," Simone said. "Unless someone tampers with it, it should only have a small amount of the man's blood on it, from where I struck him."

"That would help prove your version of events," K-Sha nodded. "Unless the prosecutor is corrupt and tampers with evidence..."

"D-don't worry, I've d-dealt with th-that sort of thing b-before," Rei said. "D-do you know who th-the p-prosecutor is for y-your case?"

"Not a clue," the hunter shrugged. "All I've heard is that my trial was delayed until I received proper representation... but now that you're here, they'll probably get moving as soon as possible..."

(Which means tomorrow morning,) Rei mused. "W-well, In that c-case, we should g-get moving and t-take a look at th-the crime scene, and t-talk with any p-potential witnesses... Oh, but first," she opened her briefcase and took out some papers, "C-could you fill these p-papers out and make this official?"

"Very well," Simone assented. "I wish both you and K-Sha good luck..."

_November 12_

_Paler Sunscreen Industries_

_Parking Lot_

As Rei and K-Sha exited the taxi, they saw that a significant portion of the parking lot had been blocked off, with a chalk outline nearby the door. A few markers were placed here and there around the outline, and a single dark-haired man with a full beard was pacing around inside the perimeter...

"Look, Miss Rei!" K-Sha pointed. "Is that who I think it is?"

"...I-it s-sure looks like him," the lawyer nodded. "Well, h-hopefully th-that will m-make things a little easier..." The two women walked up to the police tape. "E-excuse me, D-Detective Thomas?"

The man turned around, revealing that it was indeed Harold D. Thomas from _The Revengers_ investigation. Upon seeing them, however, his face immediately wrinkled into an angered expression. _"Oh no!_ Not you again! What are _you_ doing back here?!"

"Acting as Simone Rondo's representation, _worm,"_ Rei growled back. "Do you have a problem with that?!"

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you got me in last time?!" Thomas yelled. "You made a complete fool out of me!"

"You brought it on yourself, maggot!" the ex-villain retorted. "You shouldn't have jumped to conclusions in the last case-!"

***RATATATA!*** The loud noise that rang out caused the two to scream as they jumped a half-foot in the air! Turning, they saw K-Sha standing with her machine gun pointed in the air, the barrel smoking from discharge. "Knock it off, both of you! What happened last time doesn't matter, what matters is _this_ case!"

"Y-you shouldn't shoot your gun in the air like that..." Thomas grunted.

"I made sure to avoid the skyscrapers," the schoolgirl stated as she put her gun away. "Now apologize, both of you!"

"I-I'm so very sorry," Rei bowed her head. "I h-had a rough f-flight here with Uni..."

"Y... yeah, I'm sorry too," Harold sighed. "It's just, I've been guarding this crime scene on Lady Noire's orders for almost two days straight... I've only been getting by on water from the drinking fountain inside..." His stomach then growled. "Urgh.. so hungry..."

"Here, detective," K-Sha pulled out an energy bar. "I make sure to keep one on me in case I suddenly get sent on a mission... it's a bit dry, but it's better than nothing."

The man's eyes lit up on seeing the bar. "Heck yeah! Gimme that!" He snatched the energy bar right out of K-Sha's hand, unwrapping and scarfing it down ravenously. *Om nom nom, crunch crunch, gulp* "...ugh, you're right, it was a bit dry."

(He practically inhaled that energy bar...) Rei thought, sweat-dropping. "W-well, now th-that your stomach's settled, maybe y-you c-can tell us about the c-case?"

Thomas put his hand over his mouth to muffle a sudden belch, before nodding. "Excuse me... yeah, sure. First things first..." He reached into his trench coat, pulling out some papers. "Here's the autopsy report for the victim, Demitri Paler. He's the CFO- chief financial officer- of this sunscreen factory here."

*Demitri's Autopsy Report has been added to the Court Record.*

Rei took the report and read it over. "Cause of death... multiple blunt-force traumas from a mace-like weapon."

"No surprise there," K-Sha deadpanned. "Several wounds all over the body..."

"Yeah, sounds like that hunter wanted to make absolutely sure the 'vampire' was dead," Thomas said, trying to suppress a chuckle.

"But that's not Simone's style!" K-Sha mildly protested. "She only ever uses enough force to get the job done! I should know, I fought alongside her a few times when we were both in The Order!"

"Yeah, well, good luck getting anyone in court to believe you on just your word..." the detective muttered, before something occurred to him. "Oh yeah! Speaking of Miss Rondo, there were a couple of items that we confiscated when we arrested her besides the murder weapon... but these two don't seem relevant to the case at hand..." Reaching into his coat again, he pulled out two items- a mechanical device of some sort with a screen, and a flask of water. "She said to give 'em to you for safekeeping, Miss K-Sha, so..."

"Oh, thank you," the school girl nodded as she accepted the items. "I have no idea what this device is, but this jar is probably holy water..."

"What, to purify vampires?" Thomas snarked.

"S-something like that, I guess..."

*Holy Water has been added to the Court Record.*

"W-well, at least we'll h-have something t-to d-defend ourselves with in c-case a vampire attacks..." Rei stated.

"If that was supposed to be a joke, Miss Rei, it wasn't funny," K-Sha shook her head.

"I-I was o-only half-joking... *ahem* A-anyway, detective, anything else you can tell us about the case?"

"Well, there were photos taken, but I don't have 'em on me," Harold shrugged. "You'll probably see 'em at trial... Oh, by the way, the prosecutor for this case is gonna be a veteran by the name of Willard Heinlein..."

_"UGH!"_ Rei abruptly shuddered. "You did NOT just say the name 'Willard Heinlein'!"

"Wait, you know him?!" the detective asked incredulously.

"White hair, handsome face, purple pinstripe suit?"

"Bingo."

"Dammit..." Rei groaned. "That _maggot_ used to be a prosecutor in Lowee City! He was arrogant and overconfident to the extreme! Acting more like he was putting on a show than trying to convict a man! Though I admit..." Her mouth curled up in a sinister smile. "That made it all the more satisfying when I pointed out critical evidence that he'd overlooked, and exposed his incompetence to the whole courtroom! Lady Blanc promptly fired his ass after that, and I never saw him again..."

"Sounds like you ran him right outta town," Thomas observed. "Doesn't sound like the man I know, though... he's always poring over every piece of evidence that we bring to him, and he doesn't bring the case to trial unless he's confident about the outcome."

"Sounds like he learned from his mistakes," K-Sha postulated.

"Yeah, I think it'd be a mistake for you to underestimate him this time," Harold nodded.

"I'll take that under advisement," Rei deadpanned. "So then, were there any other witnesses to the crime?"

"There was one guy, a night shift worker," Thomas confirmed, "but he's bein' kept under close watch by Prosecutor Heinlein, since he didn't look too well... that being said, I can take you to talk to the victim's brother, if you want..."

"Th-that d-doesn't sound like a b-bad idea..." Rei agreed. "Lead the way, detective..."

"Let's just hope he's in the mood to talk," K-Sha said...

_November 12_

_Paler Sunscreen Industries_

_Production Line_

(Looks like no one's working today...) Rei thought as she, K-Sha and Detective Thomas walked into the factory, looking around at the unmoving manufacturing equipment. Then she spotted a tall, thin man dressed in a black suit with a bow tie and cape pacing around. He had pale skin and short black hair with a widow's peak. "I-is that him...?"

"That's the guy," Thomas nodded. "The CEO, Vlad Paler. Hey, Mr. Paler!" he called out.

"Vat is it, Detective...?" the man turned to face the trio, revealing black eyes and a pointed nose. "Vho are these young ladies?"

"The defendant's lawyer and friend," the large man said.

"H-hello!" K-Sha greeted, bowing politely.

(Wow, he sure looks like a vampire...) Rei mused inwardly. Deciding against voicing that thought, she said, "G-good evening, Mr. Paler. I-I'm Rei Ryghts, attorney-at-law..."

"Rei Ryghts?" The man blinked, nonplussed. "Is vis some kind of joke...?!"

"No, sir," Thomas shook his head. "Miss Ryghts is a certified lawyer... I should know, I've worked a case with her before..."

"I p-promise, th-the rumors about me a-are exaggerated," the former villain affirmed. "W-we j-just wanted t-to ask you about y-your b-brother..."

_"BAH!_ Vit is an absolute _travesty_ vat has occurred!" Vlad declared with a flourish of his cape. "My dear Demitri, beaten to death by some crazy vool voman thinking he vas some sort of _vampire!_ Just because ve dress nicely and have pale skin, vich I might add, is the reason ve started vis sunscreen business to begin with! Do I _look like_ I have blood-sucking vangs?!" He pointed to his mouth.

"N-no sir," Rei replied, keeping her head bowed. "Y-your t-teeth look p-perfectly f-fine t-to me..."

"Exactly! Now, I admit that ve go to the hospital sometimes and play vampire for the kids, but that is no reason vor that voman do to vat she did! I vant to make an _example_ out of her!"

"Vlad, honey..." a smooth, velvet female voice spoke from a distance. "You know it's not good for your blood pressure to get so upset..." Turning, Rei saw a tall, slightly curvy woman with skin only slightly less pale than Vlad's... she had dark brown eyes set into a perfect porcelain face, her long platinum-blonde hair billowing past her shoulders in waves... she was dressed in a white evening gown with thin shoulder straps, a cigarette on a long holder held in her left hand. Upon seeing her, a certain song suddenly jumped into the lawyer's head:

_Who-oa, here she comes~_

_Watch out boy, she'll chew you up~_

_Who-oa, here she comes~_

_She's a man-eater...~_

"My dear Lisa..." Vlad sighed as he turned to the woman, "how can I not be upset about something like vis?! My dear brother is _dead!"_

"And you think I'm not upset?" Lisa retorted. Taking a brief pull from her holder, she exhaled a small cloud of smoke before continuing, "But that's no reason to take it out on these ladies... I'm sure they're just trying to do their jobs..."

"And you really shouldn't smoke in the vactory..." her husband sighed.

"Oh, Vlad, always a stickler for the rules... it's not as if there's any production going on right now..." Lisa pointed out as she flicked a little ash off the lit end. "Oh, but where are my manners? I'm Lisa Paler, Vlad's wife. And you are?"

"K-Sha. I'm a friend of the accused."

"Rei Ryghts, attorney-at-law. And no, I'm n-not a f-final b-boss anymore."

"Oh, you're THAT Rei Ryghts?!" Lisa's eyes went wide at hearing that, taking a drag from her cancer stick to calm herself. "...come to think of it, didn't someone portray you as the villain in that Revengers movie?"

"That WAS me, ma'am, with all due respect," the lawyer asserted. "B-but th-that's not important r-right now. Is th-there anything y-you c-can t-tell us about the victim?"

"About Demitri? Well..." Lisa's face turned thoughtful. "The reason he went outside is because... well, the 'atmosphere' inside here when production's running doesn't- _didn't_ really agree with him. Goddess, it's so hard to believe he's gone..."

"S-so he went o-outside t-to g-get some f-fresh air?"

"That's right. Both Demitri and I are night owls, so we take turns supervising the production line while Vlad's sleeping. I may be a so-called 'trophy wife'," she gestured with her holder, "but I'm a trophy wife that actually does something!"

"Lisa, please..." Vlad facepalmed.

"You and your brother-in-law are together while your husband is sleeping?" K-Sha mused. "I'm sure it's all business, but..."

Lisa frowned at this. "I don't like what you're insinuating... my relationship with Demitri is- WAS purely professional. We even make sure to keep our interactions in view of the security cameras, so Vladdie can be assured nothing illicit is happening!" She took a pull from her holder, blowing another cloud of smoke.

"My vife vas not really my brother's type anyvay," Vlad pointed out. "He even advised _against_ my marrying her in ve virst place! That should tell you all you need to know!"

"We're j-just making sure all o-our b-bases are c-covered," Rei jumped in. "I-is th-there anyone e-else y-you know around h-here th-that had a-any sort o-of g-grudge against your b-brother?"

"Not as var as I know," the CEO shrugged. "Lisa?"

"Nothing more than the usual," the sexy woman said. "Demitri could be quite strict in making sure the night shift didn't slack off, but I highly doubt any worker here was sore enough about it to kill him- especially in such a brutal manner!" She took another pull from her holder, before flicking it- which caused the cancer stick to fall out and onto the floor. "Oh, bother. JANITOR!"

A few seconds later, a man in an orange janitor's uniform with a matching cap ran up, holding a broom and dustpan in hand. His hair was shoulder-length and brown in color, the cap pulled down low, hiding his eyes. "Y-yes ma'am?"

"Would you kindly clean up this mess I've made?" the woman requested.

"Yes ma'am. Right away ma'am," the janitor agreed, starting to sweep up the cigarette and ashes.

"I vish you vouldn't use him as your personal lackey..." Vlad sighed, facepalming again.

"It's called job security," Lisa countered. "At least I'm giving him something to do other than twiddling his thumbs on his mobile device... Anyway, are we done here?"

"Y-yes ma'am," Rei nodded. "Hopefully w-we'll f-find out th-the t-truth about w-what happened t-to Demitri Paler..."

"Ve already know vat happened!" Vlad declared angrily. "That voman has already all but confessed to ve crime!"

"She only confessed to _hitting_ him, not finishing him off," K-Sha shot back. "C'mon, Miss Rei, let's go before I pull out my machine gun..." The brunette turned and stomped off.

"How rude..." Lisa sighed as Rei jogged after her companion, Detective Thomas following at a distance.

_November 12_

_Paler Sunscreen Industries_

_Parking Lot_

"Well, that was a complete waste of time," K-Sha sighed forlornly.

"N-not f-for me, it wasn't," Rei said. "A-at least now I have a b-better idea o-of what happened..." Looking over the crime scene again, she asked, "By the way, Detective... wh-what are th-these markers supposed t-to represent?"

"Most of 'em are blood spatter," Thomas explained. "Already tested them, and they all belong to the victim... But this marker next to the body is where we found a footprint, which we already matched to Miss Rondo's footwear..."

"Oh yeah, I can still see it," K-Sha realized, pulling out her mobile device. "Looks like there's a few blood drops on top... might as well take a picture, just to be safe..."

_*click!*_ *Simone's Footprint has been added to the Court Record.*

"Any o-other f-footprints in th-the area?" Rei inquired.

"Nothing that was clear enough to match to anything," the detective shrugged helplessly.

"But that leaves open the possibility that someone beside Simone was here, right?" K-Sha theorized.

"...I guess so," Harold reluctantly agreed. "But good luck trying to argue that in court... Anyway, now that you've gotten a look at the crime scene, I'm gonna call the boys and tell 'em to clean up. Mr. and Mrs. Paler want to try and get their plant back up and running as soon as possible, you know..."

"Even without a CFO t-to c-crunch th-the numbers?" Rei wondered, before suddenly yawning.

Thomas shrugged, "Well, I'm sure the victim wasn't the only number-cruncher there... Paler Sunscreen ain't exactly a small business, you know. Anyway, looks like you should get some sleep, think that jet-lag's catching up with you."

"I think you're right..." the lawyer sighed.

"You can sleep at my apartment," K-Sha offered. "All I've got is the couch, but it's better than nothing..."

"That's fine," Rei nodded. "If you remember, I was sleeping in a sleeping b-bag on the floor of my d-dressing room d-during _The Revengers'_ filming..." She yawned again. "Anyway... I suppose I'll see you at t-trial tomorrow, detective..."

"Me too," K-Sha stated. "Even if all I can do is offer emotional support to Simone..."

"See you tomorrow then," Thomas nodded as the two ladies left to call a cab...

_*To be continued...*_

Seems like a somewhat normal case so far... don't forget to review!


	3. Trial, Day 1 (Part 1)

Decided to split this chapter in two to get it out faster...

Anyway, ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Trial- Day 1 (Part 1)

Court Record:

Demitri's Autopsy Report

Holy Water

Simone's Footprint

_November 13, 9:44 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Defendant Lobby No. 4_

"Good morning, Simone!" K-Sha greeted, trying to sound cheerful as the vampire hunter was lead into the lobby by the bailiff, who then unlocked her handcuffs.

"Good day to you both," Simone returned the greeting. "Miss Ryghts, are you fully prepared to defend me in court?"

"A-about as w-well a-as I c-can be," Rei replied. "B-but it d-depends on what evidence th-the p-prosecution b-brings out..."

"But you said this prosecutor wasn't corrupt, just incompetent," K-Sha pointed out.

"WAS incompetent," the lawyer corrected.

"You mean you've faced him in court before?" Simone said, slightly nonplussed. "Well, that makes me feel a little better..."

"We c-can't let our g-guard down, though..." Rei cautioned, before asking, "By the way, Miss Rondo, is there anything about your weapon that distinguishes it from other maces?"

"Well, the handle is shaped like a cross, hence the name," the hunter explained. "Also, the actual mace end is a little smaller than the average morning-star, so the lighter weight makes it easier to whip."

"Which would mean a smaller wound on the victim's body, right?" K-Sha said. "Speaking of which, where'd you strike him at anyway?"

"Just above his cheek bone, on the left side of his head," Simone explained.

"Okay," Rei nodded. "That'll help a lot..."

"Miss Ryghts, court is about to begin," the bailiff announced. "Would you, Miss K-Sha and the defendant please take your seats?"

"Yes, bailiff!" the former villain assented.

"OK, here we go!" K-Sha declared. "Mission start!"

_November 13, 10:00 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Courtroom No. 3_

"Alright, alright, settle down," the judge announced as she banged her gavel. She had dark brown hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, a pair of thick glasses resting on her wrinkled nose, with gray eyes behind them. "This court is now in session for the trial of _The State v. Simone Rondo_, who is charged with aggravated murder in the first degree. Are the lawyers ready?"

"The defense is ready, Your Honor," Rei stated.

"Defense assistant K-Sha is ready!" the schoolgirl declared.

The judge looked over at the defense's bench, raising an eyebrow. "Well, I'd recognize that light blue hair and segmented horn anywhere... Rei Ryghts. You know, last time you were here in Lastation, you nearly gave my fellow judge a heart attack?"

"I'm sorry! I'm so very sorry!" Rei reflexively apologized. "B-but it wasn't entirely my f-fault...!"

"Yes, I'm aware of that," the elder woman nodded. "One of the witnesses had brought in a mob to heckle you. But rest assured, I run a very tight ship here, so there won't be any shenanigans from the gallery on my watch! Which hopefully means you won't have to resort to *ahem* drastic measures yourself! Do I make myself clear, Miss Ryghts?"

"Y-yes, ma'am, Your Honor!" Rei assented. "I d-don't want t-to d-do that anymore a-anyway!"

"Good," the judge nodded, shifting her attention to the prosecution's bench- which was currently empty. "Oh for- where's the prosecution gone off to?!"

"H-he should be here soon, Your Honor!" Detective Thomas said nervously. "Said he had to go looking for someone-!" Just then, the courtroom doors opened, revealing a handsome man with slightly spiky white hair and green eyes, dressed in a purple pinstripe suit with a formal red tie.

"My apologies, Your Honor!" the man declared. "I had to locate a vital witness who got lost!"

"About time, Mr. Heinlein. I was just about to hold you in contempt," the judge growled. "Did you find your witness, then?"

"I did indeed! He ended up over by the medical examiner's office, for some reason..." As the man walked up to his bench, he glanced over at the defense's side, doing an abrupt double-take. "Oh no. That looks like a face I never wanted to see again..."

"Believe me, the feeling's mutual, Willard Heinlein," Rei deadpanned.

"Wait, you know each other?" the judge said, nonplussed.

"...Yes, we've faced off in court once before," the prosecutor admitted. "This woman made me a complete laughingstock in court, and in front of Lady Blanc to boot...!"

("You... you can't do this to me! I'm the great Willard Heinlein! I've never lost in court before!")

("Maybe because you never met an attorney who actually fought back! Not to mention your overlooking crucial evidence that pointed away from my client! You got complacent, _worm,_ and now you pay the price! HAAAA-HAHAHAHAHAHA!")

("Dammit, Heinlein! Your ass is grass, you overblown incompetent shit! YOU'RE FIRED!")

("NOOOOOOOOOO!")

Rei couldn't help but sweat-drop at Willard's recollection. (I'm pretty sure I didn't laugh at him like that... And Lady Blanc didn't fire him until after the trial was over...)

"...so there's some bad blood between you, is there?" the judge snarked. "Well, let's hope you can try and keep it _civil_ today..."

"I'm only here to defend my client at K-Sha's request," Rei asserted. "I only made a fool of him before because of his incompetence..."

"Well, that heaping serving of humble pie was _quite_ the bitter pill to swallow," Willard stated. "Forcing me to restart my law career in another nation entirely, helped me to realize my shortcomings. I can assure you, Miss Ryghts, that I am not the pushover you remember me to be! In fact, you could go so far as to call me... _Willard Heinlein 2.0!"_

(...He still has a touch of his old arrogance, I see...) Rei mused inwardly. "Talk is cheap, worm, so how about you put your money where your mouth is! Let's have your opening statement!"

"Y-yeah, what she said!" K-Sha concurred.

"You have thrown the gauntlet? Then so be it!" Heinlein declared. Picking up a piece of paper, he began, "This tragic crime occurred at around midnight on November the 10th! The CFO and co-founder of Paler Sunscreen Industries, Demitri Paler, had stepped outside to get some fresh air, when he was suddenly struck down by by a morning-star mace! The assailant then proceeded to beat him until the poor man had breathed his last, before disappearing into the night! However, the next morning, apparently overcome by conscience, the defendant, Simone Rondo, surrendered herself to the police. But she would only admit to assaulting the victim, not killing him, even though the evidence clearly shows otherwise!" He then gestured dramatically. "As the prosecutor for this case, it is my intention to ensure this woman receive the proper punishment for her crimes, so the victim's brother Vlad and his wife may obtain closure!"

"...you still know how to put on a show, I see," Rei observed, clearly unimpressed.

"But why did the defendant attack Demitri Paler to begin with?" the judge asked. "What was her motive?"

Willard visibly hesitated for a few seconds. "...Well, you see, Your Honor, the defendant styles herself as a hunter of 'creatures of the night.' The reason she struck down Mr. Paler was... well, she thought him to be... a vampire."

"V-vampire?!" The gallery promptly dissolved into laughter at this, causing the judge to bang her gavel several times. "Order! _Order!_ This is no laughing matter! Might I remind the gallery that a man is mourning his brother's death today?!" The audience promptly quieted.

(Guess we know who's side the gallery's on...) Rei sweat-dropped.

"...A-anyway, I shall now call my first witness," Willard said hurriedly. "Detective Thomas, if you would please." The large man did as ordered, taking his place behind the stand. "Please state your name and occupation for the record."

"Harold D. Thomas, precinct detective. I was assigned by Lady Noire herself to watch the crime scene."

'Would you kindly give us an overview of this case?" the prosecutor requested.

"Yes sir!" The man saluted, before pulling a large diagram from who-knows-where. "OK, so according to this diagram, the victim was found here, dead center, just beyond the sidewalk. To the west is the main factory for Paler Sunscreen where he works. We found a footprint next to the body which indicates that the assailant approached from the south. And according to the defendant's own testimony, she fled to the north after the incident."

*Crime Scene Diagram has been added to the Court Record.*

"Were there any other footprints in the area, Detective?" Heinlein prodded.

"There were a few here and there, but nothing clear enough to try and run through the system," Thomas said. "Of course, they could have just been left by the factory workers goin' out to their cars or what not..."

"Though it also demonstrates the possibility that there could have been others at the scene," Rei pointed out.

"There was in fact, one other person," Willard admitted, "but we shall get to him in due time. Detective, is there anything you can tell us about the wounds the victim suffered?"

"Well, I didn't see the body myself, but I do have photos," Thomas stated, pulling two photographs from his trench coat. The first photo was a wide shot, showing Demitri Paler lying a short distance from the sidewalk in a pool of his own blood. The second picture was a close up shot that focused on his head and chest, several bloody wounds clearly visible.

*Crime Scene Photos added to the Court Record.*

"As you can see, the wounds on his head and chest are consistent with a morning-star mace," the detective explained.

"...but his hair seems a bit wet," Heinlein observed. "Would you care to explain that, detective?"

"Huh?!" Thomas blinked in confusion. "Uh, gee, I dunno anything about that, sir..."

"Um..." K-Sha raised a hand. "I think I can explain it..."

"Oh?" Willard raised an eyebrow curiously. "Well then, by all means, enlighten us, Miss K-Sha..."

"Sure," the student nodded, pulling the flask of holy water and setting it on the bench. "Detective, you remember handing this water to me yesterday, right?"

"Oh yeah!" the bearded man recalled. "It was on the defendant's person when she surrendered!"

"Are you saying the defendant poured some of that water on the victim's head?" Willard guessed. "But why would she do such a thing?"

"Because this is consecrated holy water," K-Sha explained. "Most likely, she was checking to see if Mr. Demitri was a vampire or not..." The gallery laughed briefly, before being swiftly silenced by the judge's gavel.

"...I see," Willard muttered with his eyes closed. "But why wait to do that until after she had slain him?"

"B-but that's not what happened!" the schoolgirl insisted.

Rei then cleared her throat loudly, before speaking, "The defense stands by its assertion that Simone Rondo only struck down Demitri Paler, who was then finished off by another party after she left the scene."

_"Objection!"_ the prosecutor cried. "Would you care to tell us who this other party is, Miss Ryghts?"

"I-I, u-umm, haven't q-quite f-figured th-that out y-yet..."

The judge banged her gavel once, before shaking her head. "Objection sustained. An assertion is worthless without proof, as I'm sure you're well aware, Miss Ryghts. Do you have any other questions for Detective Thomas?"

"J-just a moment..." the lawyer grunted as she looked over the crime scene photos. Holding up the close-up photo, she spoke, "Detective, may I c-call you attention t-to th-this wound here? It's j-just above the ch-cheek b-bone on the left side..."

"What about it?" Thomas blinked.

"D-doesn't it seem a little s-smaller th-than th-the other wounds on the b-body?"

"Objection! What is the relevance?" Willard spoke up.

"I-I have reason t-to believe th-that this wound was c-caused b-by a d-different weapon th-than the others!" Rei asserted, slamming her fists on the bench.

"Please," Heinlein waved dismissively. "The reason the wound is smaller is because it was a lighter impact than the others..."

"OBJECTION!" Rei yelled. "Look again at the photo! The depth of where the spikes on the mace pierced the victim's skin are just as deep as the other wounds! That doesn't look like a 'lighter impact' to me!"

"Oh!" the judge blinked in mild surprise. "Well, that's a valid point, Miss Ryghts..."

"Indeed," the bluenette nodded. "Just before trial began, my client informed me that the mace she uses in her hunts is slightly smaller to make it easier to whip!"

"And I can back her up on that!" K-Sha added. "I've seen it myself!"

"So what are you insinuating?" Willard pressed.

"I refer back to my earlier assertion, that my client only knocked down the victim and then left, only for another party to murder Mr. Paler afterward!" the lawyer declared with a flourish of her pointer finger, the gallery starting to murmur. "And that the real murderer used a larger mace!"

"...I see," the prosecutor said, not looking fazed in the slightest. He then reached under his bench, lifting up a large evidence bag. "Perhaps you mean... _this_ mace?" It did indeed appear to be somewhat large, attached to a chain with a straight handle. "As you can see, this morning-star is covered in blood, which DNA analysis has confirmed to belong to the victim."

"...!" Rei's eyes went wide.

"Y-yeah!" K-Sha agreed. "That's gotta be the murder weapon! But it's not Simone's weapon! That much I can say for sure!"

*Bloody Mace has been added to the Court Record.*

The judge banged her gavel to quiet the crowd down. "You seem quite confident in your assertion, Miss K-Sha..."

"Well, Simone and I used to fight together for The Order, so of course I know what weapons she uses!" the former mercenary pointed out.

"Well, your belief in your former partner is all well and good..." Willard nodded. "However, this brings up a vital question: _where is the defendant's weapon now?"_

"H... huh?" K-Sha blinked, as if said question had failed to register.

"W-well, m-my c-client said th-that her C-Combat C-Cross was c-confiscated w-when she was arrested..." Rei stuttered uncertainly.

The white-haired prosecutor just shook his head. "I'm afraid that's not good enough this time, Miss Ryghts... unlike before, I made certain to personally examine all the evidence myself. And I can say for a fact and truth..." He thumped the packaged mace on his bench for emphasis. "That _this_ mace was the only one currently stored in the evidence locker!"

"O-objection!" K-Sha yelled with slightly less conviction than she would have liked. "C-can anybody else back you up on that, sir?!"

"I can!" Detective Thomas asserted. "I went and checked myself this morning, at Mr. Heinlein's request! And that's the only mace I could find! Nothin' else even resembling a morning-star in there!" The crowd began muttering at this, only to be gaveled down.

"B-but... that can't be..." K-Sha grunted, sweating.

"Unfortunately it is, Miss K-Sha," Willard shrugged. "As I'm sure Rei Ryghts here knows, evidence is everything in a court of law. If you cannot produce this other weapon..." He thumped the mace on his bench again. "Then we have no choice but to conclude that _this_ is the mace that was on the defendant's person when she was arrested!"

"Noooo!" the schoolgirl recoiled, causing the audience to murmur.

"Order!" the judge banged her gavel. "It seems that I must side with the prosecution on this matter. With all due respect, young lady, perhaps you should leave the legal arguments to the one actually wearing the attorney's badge!"

"Urk!" K-Sha grunted in despair, turning to Rei. "Sorry, Miss Rei... mission failed..."

(Not quite yet,) the horned lawyer thought to herself. (But perhaps a temporary withdrawal to regroup is in order...) Aloud she spoke, "Your Honor, I think we're done with this witness. Let's move on."

"Very well," the robed woman nodded. "Detective Thomas, you may step down."

"Perhaps now you're realizing that you actually have to take me seriously this time?" Willard stated matter-of-factly.

"I always take trials seriously!" Rei shot back. "At least YOU'RE taking your job seriously this time, worm! So how about that 'vital witness' you had to search for earlier?"

"Patience, Miss Ryghts. You'll get your chance to cross-examine him soon enough. And on that note..." Heinlein turned to the judge. "Your Honor, I request a short recess to ensure my witness is ready."

"You afraid he's wandered off again?" the elder woman snarked.

"Th-that's not it..." Willard ducked his head. "*Ahem* Actually, he hasn't been looking so well this morning... I just want to make sure that he won't keel over on the stand or something."

"...Fair enough, Mr. Heinlein." The judge then banged her gavel. "A ten-minute recess so the prosecution can make sure their witness is in good enough shape to testify. We're adjourned."

_To be continued..._

Next up, the prosecution's star witness! Will Rei be able to pull off the turnabout?! Review!


	4. Trial, Day 1 (Part 2)

And here's the next part! Things will be heating up in this chapter!

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Trial- Day 1 (Part 2)

Court Record:

Demitri's Autopsy Report

Holy Water

Simone's Footprint

Crime Scene Diagram

Crime Scene Photos

Bloody Mace

_November 13, 10:40 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Defendant Lobby No. 4_

"...I still can't believe the Combat Cross is missing," K-Sha muttered. Putting her hands on her hips she inquired bluntly, "Are we sure that prosecutor didn't just hide the evidence somewhere?!"

"But you never said that Mr. Heinlein was the corrupt sort, did you, Miss Ryghts?" Simone pointed out.

The former villain was silent for a moment. "W-well, I've d-dealt with q-quite a few c-corrupt p-prosecutors b-back in Lowee, but... I d-didn't see anything in Heinlein's body language th-that indicated th-that he was b-being deceitful."

"Yes, and that detective also double-checked, right?" The hunter said. "Is *he* trustworthy?"

"I think so..." K-Sha sighed, before something occurred to her. "But, he said he was just assigned to watch the crime scene! What if another detective that was working the case was the one that hid Simone's weapon?"

"P-possibly," Rei allowed. "B-but what we should c-concern ourselves with n-now is th-the n-next witness..."

"So what's our plan of attack?" Simone asked.

"Simple," K-Sha explained, "we find enough contradictions and problems in the witness' testimony to force the judge to put off the verdict for a day. That'll give us the time we need to find out what happened to your Combat Cross... and maybe if the vampire you were chasing is involved."

"Wouldn't surprise me," Simone shrugged. "That fiend could've easily doubled back and slain that man while I was looking fruitlessly elsewhere..."

"W-well, it d-depends on what th-the witness has t-to say," Rei stated. "A-anyway, I th-think recess is about over, so we s-should g-get moving..."

_November 13, 10:50 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Courtroom No. 3_

"Alright, we're back in session, so quiet down," the judge ordered as she banged her gavel. "So, Mr. Heinlein, is your witness ready?"

"...yes, Your Honor," the prosecutor answered after a moment. "He seemed a little unsteady on his feet, but he insists he can testify. The prosecution calls Tom Hall to the stand!" A dark-haired man wearing a red turtleneck sweater and blue jeans slowly made his way to the witness stand, indeed looking a little unsteady. His skin was pale and his black eyes seemed a bit unfocused.

"I can see why Mr. Willard was worried about this guy," K-Sha whispered to Rei, who silently nodded in response.

"Please state your name and occupation, witness."

"My name is... Thomas Hall," the man began, bracing his hands against the stand. "I'm a... production line worker at... Paler Sunscreen."

The judge looked over the witness with a critical eye. "...With all due respect, Mr. Hall, are you drunk or something?"

"Not drunk, just a little sick..." the man responded. "But, I can testify! I'm good, I promise!"

The robed woman mulled it over for a moment, before shaking her head. "Well, all right, witness. But I reserve the right to have you pulled from the stand if you start looking any worse! Understand?!"

"Yes ma'am," Hall agreed.

"And on that note, I would hope you wouldn't be too harsh on this man, Miss Ryghts, given his condition," Willard spoke to his adversary.

"I'll t-try not t-to upset him t-too much," Rei acquiesced, tapping her index fingers together.

The judge nodded, before banging her gavel. "Alright, you can begin your testimony anytime."

"OK," the witness said, before beginning, "I was... on the other side of the parking lot... across from the entryway. Sneakin' a little drink, I admit... so when Mr. Demitri came out, I hid myself... didn't wanna get scolded or lose my job... And then... I see this spike ball and chain come outta nowhere and smack Mr. Demitri in the face. He went down... and then this guy, er, girl showed up, with muscles and long hair..."

"Was it a man or a woman?!" Willard demanded.

"-Woman! it was a woman!" Hall insisted. "Yeah, 'cause she had breasts... anyway, before Mr. Demitri can get up, she starts smacking him again... over and over again... I stayed hidden 'cause I didn't wanna be next... So after she was done she marched off... to my right... and disappeared. That's all."

"Hmmm..." the judge pondered. "Did you try to contact the police, Mr. Hall?"

"Well, by the time I got back to the factory, someone else had already called the cops," Hall stated. "Guess someone else saw Mr. Demitri's dead body..."

"For clarification, it was the victim's sister-in-law who made the call," Willard stated.

(Lisa was the one who called the cops?) Rei thought. (Does that mean she was a witness as well...?)

"By the way, Mr. Hall," the prosecutor continued, "would you kindly point out where you were standing on the crime scene diagram?"

"Uh... right about there, I think," the witness pointed to the center of the right edge of the diagram.

*Crime Scene Diagram updated in Court Record.*

"Which would mean that you saw the murderer flee to the north, which matches up with what we've already learned," Heinlein nodded in satisfaction.

"Well, I have to say," the judge mused, "this testimony is quite decisive if it stands. I personally can't see anything wrong with the witness' statements, myself..."

"W-with all d-due respect, Your Honor, th-that's why y-you're the j-judge and I'm th-the d-defense attorney," Rei stuttered.

"True enough," the elder woman conceded. "In that case, you can begin your cross now, Miss Ryghts."

"I'm not sure if I can see anything wrong either," K-Sha said grimly. "Can you?"

"W-we have t-to t-try..." Rei muttered as she looked over the evidence... then something caught her eye. "M-Mr. Hall..."

"Yes, ma'am?" the pale man spoke up.

"S-so, when you s-saw the murderer b-beating Mr. Paler t-to death... d-did she ch-change p-position at all?"

_"Objection!_ What is the relevance of that?!" Willard protested.

"If it _wasn't_ relevant, _worm,_ I wouldn't be asking!" Rei growled.

"Watch yourself, Miss Ryghts!" the judge banged her gavel. "There's no need for that here... but I'll allow the witness to answer the question."

"Uh, well..." Tom pondered. "I didn't see her move around much while she was beatin' Mr. Demitri..."

"I see," the bluenette nodded. "Unfortunately, your testimony contradicts this piece of evidence! TAKE THAT!" She presented the photo of Simone's footprint.

"A footprint? How does that refute Mr. Hall's testimony?" Willard snorted with his arms crossed.

"Take a closer look, Heinlein!" Rei pointed. "There are blood drops on top of the footprint! If Miss Rondo didn't move, those droplets wouldn't be there, would they?!"

"Ack!" the prosecutor recoiled slightly.

"Ah!" the judge realized with wide eyes.

"Which means one of two things!" Rei pressed on. "Either Simone DID move while beating the victim, or someone else entirely did the beating after she left! Either way..." She slammed her fists on the bench. "Mr. Hall's testimony is inaccurate at best!"

"Hooooooooh?!" the witness flailed around in shock, causing the gallery to murmur...

"Order! Order!" the judge banged her gavel a few times. "Well, Mr. Hall? What do you have to say for yourself?"

"But... it was dark out..." Tom protested. "Couldn't see that well..."

"OBJECTION! Sorry, maggot, that doesn't wash with me," Rei shook her head.

"What do you mean?!" Willard demanded.

"TAKE THAT!" Rei presented the crime scene wide shot. "Take a look at this photo! There's a floodlight over the rear entrance, clear as day! It would have been easy for the witness to see exactly what happened!"

"OBJECTION!" the prosecutor shook his head. "Unfortunately for you, Miss Ryghts, that floodlight has been burnt out for a few days. I personally confirmed this with Lisa Paler..."

_"Whaaaaaat?!"_ Rei recoiled in shock, the gallery chattering at the sudden reversal, forcing the judge to bang her gavel to restore order.

"Y-you can't be serious!" K-Sha wailed in dismay.

"I speak in all seriousness, young lady," Willard shrugged. "This means that it's entirely possible that Thomas Hall couldn't see if Miss Rondo shifted her position while beating the victim to death! Which means there was really no contradiction at all!"

"Arrrgh!" the horned lawyer groaned, sweat beading on her forehead. (Maybe I did underestimate this guy after all...!)

The judge shook her head. "I side with the prosecution on this matter. And even if Miss Rondo did shift her position, it doesn't really help the defense's position anyway..."

"B-but...! If it was so dark out, that doesn't really make the witness's testimony reliable, does it?" K-Sha grunted in desperation. She then turned to Rei. "Please Miss Rei, you have to think of something...!"

"Now, now," Willard shook his head. "Young lady, I'm not a cruel man, despite what Miss Ryghts might have told you. Given the circumstances surrounding this case, I'd be more than willing to accept an insanity plea at this point..."

"B-but Simone's not insane!" the former mercenary insisted.

"Excuse me? The defendant herself said that she was chasing a, _quote-unquote,_ vampire," Heinlein pointed out. "Clearly someone who believe such 'creatures of the night' actually exist are not in their right mind..."

"But they DO exist!" Simone protested from the defendant's chair, causing a round of laughter from the audience.

_"Order!"_ The judge banged her gavel. "Another outburst like that, defendant, and I will hold you in contempt!" Turning her attention back to the defense's bench, she said, "Now then, Miss Ryghts, if you cannot find any other contradictions within Mr. Hall's testimony, then I will have to accept it as accurate and render my verdict. I _highly_ suggest you consider taking Mr. Heinlein's offer of an insanity plea..."

(But that would be betraying my client!) Rei thought to herself. (Vampire or not, I can't let things end this way! There has to be something else...) Looking in K-Sha's direction, she glimpsed the holy water still sitting on the bench. (Wait a minute...) Standing straight, she declared, "Your Honor, I wish to continue my cross-examination."

The robed woman just shook her head in disappointment. "...you've just lost your chance at an insanity plea. Not a wise choice, defense. But very well."

"I should've warned you, Miss Ryghts, she's a tough old bird," Willard sighed.

"I can handle it," Rei shrugged. "Now then, Mr. Hall, just so we're clear... you say you saw my client strike down Demitri Paler, then approach him and beat him to death, and then she left. Is that correct?"

"Yyyyes ma'am," Hall slurred a little.

"Hmhmhm..." the former villain chuckled sinisterly. "So, you never saw her pour any water on the victim's head?"

"...!" Willard's eyes went wide with shock.

_"Ah...!"_ K-Sha gasped. "That's right! The holy water! I completely forgot about that!"

(Even though it was literally right under your nose?!) Rei sweat-dropped, before continuing, "You see, Mr. Hall, this close-up photo clearly shows that Mr. Paler's hair is all wet! So how come you left that detail out of your testimony?!"

"Huuuuuuuuhhhh?!" the witness flailed in shock again.

_"Objection!"_ Willard cried, sweating slightly. "M-might I remind you that it was pitch-black outside?!"

"OBJECTION!" Rei shot back. "That won't work a second time, Heinlein! After all, even if he didn't see it, he should've been close enough to _hear_ the sound of water being poured!"

"Nghkk!" the prosecutor grimaced, causing the gallery to murmur.

"Order! Order in the court!" the judge gaveled down the audience. "Just what are you insinuating here, Miss Ryghts?"

"That Mr. Hall's testimony is completely unreliable!" Rei argued. "And might I remind the court of what the witness admitted at the start of his testimony?"

"And that was?" the elder woman pressed.

"That he snuck out of the factory he was working in order to sneak a drink!" Rei pointed dramatically. "In other words, there's a very real possibility that Thomas Hall was intoxicated at the time he saw the murder!"

"NGGGOOOOHHHH!" Willard grabbed his hair in distress. "I-I'm starting to get horrible flashbaaaacks...!"

"In fact, Your Honor," Rei continued, _"you yourself_ believed the witness to be drunk when he first took the stand, didn't you?!"

"Ah! Y-yes, that's right, I did!" the judge agreed. "And to be frank, I'm still not completely convinced that he isn't!"

"Th-that's right!" K-Sha gasped. "I-If he was drunk at the time of Mr. Paler's death, then his testimony can't be used in court, can it?!"

_"Exactly,"_ the goddess nodded. "Which is why, at this time..." she slammed her fists on the bench. "The defense demands that Mr. Hall's testimony be stricken from the record in its entirety!"

_"Noooooooo!"_ Tom Hall wailed, waving his arms in the air in apparent distress, before collapsing over the witness stand in shock. The gallery promptly went into a tizzy.

"Order! Order! ORDER!" the judge yelled as she banged her gavel repeatedly. Once the chatter had subsided, the robed woman heaved a sigh before stating, "Well, it seems the defense has made a compelling argument about Mr. Hall's competency. Sorry, Mr. Heinlein, but you're going to have to find another witness to prove your case, this witness's entire testimony is hereby stricken from the record."

"C-curse you...! Again you humiliate me, Rei Ryghts...!" Willard groaned, sweat beading on his forehead as he braced his hands against the bench.

"What do I doooooo...?" Tom moaned as he slowly pushed himself back to a standing position. "What do I do nooooow, master...?"

(Master...?!) Rei pondered. She watched as the factory worker abruptly jerked his head up, as if trying to listen for something...

"Yes... I understand... my role is finished..." Hall slowly waddled over to the defense's bench, stopping in front of K-Sha.

"Don't try anything funny, mister," the schoolgirl warned as she took a defensive stance. "I may not have my guns on me, but I *am* trained in CQC...!"

But instead, the man abruptly grabbed the jar of holy water, popping off the top before dumping it on his own head! **"GWAAAAAAHHH!"** Thomas Hall screamed as he was abruptly engulfed in flames, the audience screaming in shock!

_"KYAAAAAA!"_ K-Sha screamed as she recoiled in fright!

_"What the-?!"_ Rei gasped.

_"What in the world?!"_ Willard shouted, watching as the man collapsed to the ground, his upper body completely immolated! "Wh-what just happened?!"

"I'll tell you what happened!" Simone Rondo spoke up loudly, her booming voice grabbing the attention of the courtroom. "That holy water, when it comes into contact with a being possessed by a dark aura, attempts to purge the darkness with a purifying flame! But the fact that it reacted so badly with Thomas Hall can only mean one thing!"

"And what would that be, defendant?!" the judge demanded.

"Simple! This man was _already dead!_ And his cadaver was being used as a puppet!" Simone declared, causing the gallery to mutter in confusion.

"A puppet?! But by who?!" the prosecutor demanded, before realization suddenly dawned. "Wait... don't tell me...!"

"It seems you've already realized it, Prosecutor Heinlein," Simone nodded. "This poor man was a puppet, and likely an unfortunate victim, of _the vampire!"_ The gallery didn't laugh this time, instead buzzing in shock and disbelief. "Most likely the same one that I was pursuing that very night!"

"ORDER! **ORDER!"** the judge screamed as she banged her gavel repeatedly to no avail. _"That's it!_ We're adjourning for today! Bailiff, have Miss K-Sha detained for questioning! Miss Ryghts, Mr. Heinlein, my chambers, _NOW!"_

_To be continued..._

Wow, who expected THAT twist?! Read and review!


	5. Investigation, Day 2

Sorry this took so long... combination of Fire Emblem Heroes and lack of motivation...

Anyway, ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Investigation- Day 2

Court Record:

Demitri's Autopsy Report

Holy Water

Simone's Footprint

Crime Scene Diagram

Crime Scene Photos

Bloody Mace

_November 13, 12:42 PM_

_Lastation Basilicom_

_Office of Priest John Balder_

"Yes, I did indeed consecrate that Holy Water for Miss Simone Rondo," the bald NPC priest nodded. Rei, Willard, and Noire herself were standing in the office with him. "I can't say I've ever seen a vampire myself, but I could sense no deception from her... and I admired her resolve for doing the Goddesses' work."

"Would you be willing to swear an affidavit to that effect?" Willard requested.

"Certainly," the priest agreed.

*Priest's Affidavit has been added to the Court Record.*

"Actually, he just takes the water to me and I infuse it with a small amount of my Share Energy," Noire elaborated as she added her own signature to the affidavit. "By the way, where's K-Sha at?"

"U-ummm... w-well... sh-she's..." Rei hesitated.

"Her Honor had Miss K-Sha detained for questioning," Willard spoke up. "She implied that she would likely have that girl charged with possession of a dangerous substance..."

At hearing this, Noire's eyes shrank to near pinpricks. "She... did... **WHAAAAT?!"**

"M-milady, please calm yourself!" the priest tried to talk her down. "I-I'm sure the judge thought she had a good reason...!"

"Well, I don't think it's a good reason!" Noire retorted, a blood vein visible on her forehead. "So where's K-Sha now, Heinlein?!"

"M-most likely in a holding cell..." the prosecutor said.

"Fine then! Call the warden and inform him of my intent to post bail for K-Sha!" the CPU ordered. "And once you've done that, you're coming with me to see that judge so I can give her a piece of my mind!"

"A-at once, Lady Noire!" Willard nodded as he pulled out his cell phone.

"S-so what about m-me?" Rei asked cautiously.

"I want you to go to the prison to pick up K-Sha when they let her out!" Noire replied. "And while you're at it, you should ask Simone Rondo for any more information about that supposed vampire running about!"

"Y-yes ma'am!" Rei reflexively saluted. "I-I'll g-get right on th-that!"

"Wait!" Pastor John spoke up. "Before you go... just in case that vampire catches you off-guard..." He handed another jug of holy water to Rei.

"Th-thank you, pastor," the lawyer bowed her head in respect. "B-but hopefully I w-won't need it..."

_November 13_

_Lastation City Detention Center_

_Holding Cell_

"K-Sha, you're out," the warden proclaimed as he unlocked the holding cell door. "Lady Noire posted bail for you. You can pick up your things at the desk."

"Noire did~? Wow, that's so nice of her~!" the schoolgirl exclaimed happily as she stood up and skipped to the door.

"Lucky bitch," another female prisoner muttered, "having the goddess' favor like that..." She promptly clammed up when K-Sha gave her a death glare, before turning and marching out of the cell...

As the former mercenary entered the lobby, she was mildly disappointed to see Rei Ryghts standing there. "Oh. Miss Rei. Where's Noire at?"

"M-most likely g-giving the j-judge an earful f-for having you arrested," the lawyer explained.

"O-oh, right... of course... Noire's so nice to stand up for me~" K-Sha sighed, blushing as a large heart floated over her head...

_*Wha-P-SHING!*_ -only for said heart to be cut down by Rei's slicing finger. _"Focus,_ maggot! We still need to figure out who the guilty party is in this case!"

"Oh! S-sorry, you're right..." the schoolgirl looked down in mild shame. "Um... I guess we should talk to Simone again, while we're here..."

"Exactly what I was thinking," Rei nodded. "Come on, let's get to the visitor's chamber..."

_November 13_

_Lastation City Detention Center_

_Visitor's Room_

"Oh, hello, K-Sha," Simone greeted as she sat down on the other side of the glass. "So they let you out?"

"Lady Noire bailed her out," Rei explained. "B-but that's n-not important right n-now. D-do you have a-any information on th-this vampire y-you were ch-chasing...?"

"You do realize, I didn't exactly get a good look at their face..." the hunter sighed.

"Please, Simone. Anything at all you could tell us would be helpful," K-Sha pleaded. "Even just about vampires in general..."

"Very well," the blonde woman agreed. "First and foremost: the fact that vampires dissolve in sunlight is only partially correct. Sufficiently powerful blood-suckers will only be weakened by the sun, in most cases only being slightly stronger and faster than the average human in such a situation. Only at night can they access their full power..."

"S-so, was th-this vampire in p-particular one of th-these p-powerful ones?" Rei inquired.

"...I'm fairly certain that is the case," Simone said. "At least according to the reaction I got from my aura tracker..."

"Aura tracker...?" Rei looked over at K-Sha, who just shrugged helplessly.

"You did obtain an electronic device of some sort from the detective, did you not?" the hunter pressed.

"OH! That thing..." K-Sha rummaged though her backpack, soon pulling out the device in question. "Is this it?"

"Ah, good. You do have it," Simone nodded in relief. "My brother Richter had this device created by a certain magical scientist from Leanbox... Apparently she had already invented a similar device for tracking magical energies in general..."

Rei managed to get a glimpse at the back of the device, and sure enough, 'MAGES.' was imprinted there. (Should've known...) Aloud she spoke, "S-so this d-device t-tracks vampires, then?"

"Yes. And not just the vampires themselves," Simone expounded, "but it also has a setting that can track the residual dark aura they leave behind, in effect allowing one to follow their trail, like a canine follows an animal's scent. Hopefully with this device, you can track the vampire's movements, and find some evidence that will actually be admissible in court..."

*Vampire Aura Tracker has been added to the Court Record.*

"Thanks, Simone!" K-Sha said happily. "I think this'll really help us out! Right, Miss Rei?"

"I c-certainly hope so..." the lawyer nodded. "I g-guess we should b-begin our search at P-Paler Sunscreen Factory... seeing as T-Tom Hall was a worker th-there... We'll p-probably have t-to ask for p-permission, though."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get this recon mission underway!" K-Sha exclaimed.

"I wish you both good luck," Simone stated.

_November 13_

_Paler Sunscreen Industries_

_Parking Lot_

Rei couldn't help but note that there were a lot more cars in the area compared to yesterday. (So much for re-checking the crime scene...) She then noticed a familiar face standing outside.

"That's Vlad Paler, isn't it?" K-Sha noted. Taking out the aura tracker, she scanned him discreetly, but it showed no reaction whatsoever.

"W-well, that's c-convenient, seeing as we n-need t-to ask him for p-permission t-to search th-the p-premises anyway..." Rei said as they approached. "E-excuse me, Mr. Paler?"

The well-dressed man turned at hearing his name. "Oh, it's you again. I assume vat because you're here, vat you kept vat vool voman from being convicted today..."

"...Sounds he didn't hear about what happened at the end of trial today," K-Sha observed.

"Vat are you talking about?" Vlad raised an eyebrow.

"Well, blah-blah-blah..." K-Sha began.

"...yadda yadda yadda, and then he burst into flames!" Rei finished.

"VAT?! How did such a ving happen?!" Vlad gasped in shock. "Are you sure vat vas really holy vater, and not something more dangerous?!"

"I t-talked t-to the p-priest who originally b-blessed the water t-to b-begin with," Rei said, pulling a sheet of paper from her briefcase.

*Priest's Affidavit handed over to Vlad Paler.*

"Let me see..." the pale man muttered as he looked over the paper. "Oh, even Lady Noire herself has signed this...? Vell, if I cannot trust the vords of the goddess herself, vho can I trust?"

"That's right, sir," K-Sha nodded happily. "You can always trust Noire to keep her word~"

Rei promptly snapped her fingers in front of her companion's face to bring her back to reality, before stating, "Anyway, sir, d-do you know anything about T-Tom Hall? His b-background, w-what he's b-been d-doing recently..."

"I don't know him personally," Vlad shrugged, "but vhen he vas retained as a vitness, I looked at his record in the payroll... he seemed to be an average employee at best... usually punctual, it vould seem..."

"Probably why the vampire targeted him, because he was 'under the radar', in a sense," K-Sha theorized.

"P-possibly..." Rei shrugged. "Anyway, Mr. Paler, we would like y-your p-permission t-to search Mr. Hall's effects at th-the f-factory here..."

"You two ladies vish to enter the men's locker room?" the CEO deadpanned.

"W-we p-promise not t-to p-peep at anybody...!" the lawyer stammered, blushing a little.

"That's right! My heart belongs to Noire and Noire alone!" K-Sha said firmly. "Besides, I'm a master of stealth, so those men won't even know we're there..."

"Hmmm..." Vlad pondered for a bit. "Oh, very vell then. But I vill hold you to your vord on vat." He then told them Hall's locker number.

"Th-thank you very much, sir," Rei bowed in gratitude. "Let's go, K-Sha..."

_November 13_

_Paler Sunscreen Industries_

_Men's Locker Room_

An NPC male walked out of the shower, with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. As he made his way to his clothes locker, his eye caught sight of a large yet nondescript box sitting by the entrance. "Strange... is that the delivery of new uniforms?" Shrugging it off, he went ahead and dressed himself, before walking out of the room.

"(...Okay, I think we're clear,)" a voice whispered from inside the box, which abruptly lifted up, revealing K-Sha and Rei inside. "Good thing I had a box big enough for both of us..."

"I c-can't believe th-that actually worked..." Rei sighed as she stood up.

"You'd be surprised how often it does work," the ex-mercenary shrugged, before starting to look around. "Right, so where's Mr. Hall's locker?"

"L-let's see..." Rei mumbled as she scanned the numbers in each row. "Oh, here we are..." She turned and walked down the row of lockers until coming to one that matched the number she was given. "Th-this is it... th-there's no lock, s-so we should b-be OK..."

So the duo opened the locker and looked through it, unfortunately failing to find anything of note. "Well, that was a waste of time," K-Sha moaned in despair. "So now what do we do?"

"Not necessarily... you d-do still have th-that aura t-tracker, right?" Rei pointed out.

"Oh!" the student gasped, pulling out the device in question. "Of course... we can use this!" Turning it on, the screen showed a small amount of dark aura around the locker. "Hmm... so he did access this locker after becoming the vampire's thrall..." Turning, she gasped as the screen suddenly showed a stronger reaction. "Oh, there's something this way!"

"L-lead the way then... b-but keep your voice down," Rei cautioned. So the two followed the source of the stronger reaction, soon winding up at a different locker. Unfortunately, this one had a padlock on it...

"Uh-oh," K-Sha groaned, "I guess we don't have probable cause to break in, do we?"

"..." Rei bit her lip as she considered her options. "K-Sha, make sure no one's coming..."

"Um, OK, but why?" the ex-yandere asked as she walked back toward the entrance. "I don't hear anyone coming..." Suddenly there was a bright flash, causing K-Sha to turn back, beholding Rei's HDD form! "Wh-what are you doing?!"

"Pipe down, maggot," Chaos Heart growled as she concentrated energy in her finger... _*Wha-P-SHING!*_ The padlock was cut off, falling to the ground with a thud as the CPU pulled out the metal loop.

"Wh-what are you doing?! That's breaking and entering!" K-Sha gasped in dismay. "We won't be able to use any evidence we find in court now...!"

"Only if they can find proof that we broke in," Chaos Heart countered as she held the pieces of the broken lock in her hand... which were suddenly disintegrated by a red ball of energy. That done, the energy dissipated as Rei reverted to normal. "No lock, no proof."

"Th-that's still kinda iffy, I think..." K-Sha grunted in mild disbelief. Meanwhile in Planeptune, IF sneezed.

"You forget, I'm an _ex-villain,_ peon, so is it really surprising that I would take some morally ambiguous actions?" Rei pointed out. "A-anyway, let's see wh-what we've g-got..." So the lawyer went ahead and opened the locker...

...only to spot something she never expected to see- a metal crucifix and small spiked metal ball, joined together by a length of chain. "Wh-what the-?!"

"Ah! This is...!" K-Sha gasped in shock. "...Simone's weapon- the consecrated Combat Cross! And look- there's a small amount of blood on it, just like she said!"

*Simone's Combat Cross has been added to the Court Record.*

(Simone's vampire killer weapon?! But what was it doing here?!) Rei wondered. "K-Sha, you've got Noire's number, right? Call her and tell her to get Detective Thomas down here at once!"

"OK!" the Gold Third member agreed, pulling out her cell phone...

_*A short while later...*_

"Have no fear, the police are here!" Harold Thomas announced as he and several forensic personnel entered the locker room area.

"About damn time!" a male NPC complained. "These two ladies won't let us go in to get our stuff! Something about 'protecting evidence' or whatever crap!"

"Like I already said, we're just doing what Noire told us to do until he got here!" K-Sha asserted.

"Alright, calm down," Thomas waved his hands in a 'down, boy' motion. "Look, if your locker's not in the row where they found the evidence, then we'll probably let you get your stuff. Otherwise, you're gonna have to wait a bit longer. Now then," he turned to address Rei and K-Sha, "where's this evidence you two found?"

"Over here!" K-Sha gestured as she and Rei led them to the locker. "We made sure not to touch anything after we opened the locker..."

"M-my f-fingerprints should only b-be on th-the latch," Rei added.

"Alright then," the detective nodded, suddenly stopping upon seeing the contents of the locker. "A morning-star whip?!"

"That's right! Simone's whip, the one that went missing!" K-Sha stated.

"Really? ...But if that's the case, what was it doing here?" Thomas grunted with a hand behind his head as the forensics team silently went into action, taking photographs and fingerprints.

"Maybe that Tom Hall guy switched it with the real murder weapon to nail Simone in court!" the ex-yandere postulated.

"That's impossible!" Harold yelled suddenly. "That evidence locker was absolutely secure! No way that guy could've gotten in! Especially if he was a vampire's zombie puppet or whatever!"

"S-speaking of which," Rei cut in, "D-did you g-get an autopsy report on Mr. Hall y-yet?"

"Not quite yet," the bearded man shrugged. "But Mr. Heinlein ordered him to be put at the top of the list for the medical examiner to check... so we should get it today. Actually... hey, you!" He shouted to the NPC that had just set the Combat Cross in an evidence bag. "How 'bout you take these ladies with you back to the precinct, so they can check on that autopsy?"

"Yessir, Detective Thomas!" the shadow-man saluted.

"Good idea!" K-Sha nodded. "After what happened last time, I'm not letting Simone's whip out of my sight again!"

"Don't worry, I'll make sure this doesn't get lost," the forensic technician shook his head. "But if you're gonna be riding with me, I'd like to have Miss Ryghts riding shotgun."

"W-why me?" the lawyer asked, nonplussed.

"Because I'll feel safer if you're in plain sight," the NPC deadpanned, causing Rei to duck her head and sweat-drop...

_November 13_

_Lastation City Police Headquarters_

_Forensics Lab_

"Got some evidence for you, Miss Lyster," the NPC announced as he, Rei, and K-Sha entered the lab.

"Yeah, sure, just set it on the counter over there," the female lab technician said, not even looking up from her microscope. This the shadow-man did, before bowing and walking out.

"Y-you're not g-going t-to examine it?" Rei questioned.

"In case you haven't noticed, I've got a backlog here," the lady said as she straightened up. Turning to look at the duo, she did a mild double-take upon recognizing the former villain. "...Look, I don't care if you are Rei Ryghts, you have to wait your turn like everyone else, got it?"

"But the trial resumes tomorrow!" K-Sha insisted. "What if you don't get to it before then?! My friend could be wrongly convicted!"

"Not my problem," the spectacled brunette said with an uncaring shrug. "You can take it up with my boss, but I doubt he'll listen to you either..."

Suddenly, K-Sha got an idea, pulling out her cell phone and dialing. "...Hello, Noire~? We're at the forensics lab, but this mean lady doesn't want to look at the evidence we brought in~!"

"Ah-ha, nice try," Lyster rolled her eyes. "You're gonna have to do better than that..."

In response, the schoolgirl pushed the speaker button on her phone before holding it up. "She doesn't believe it's you, Noire..."

"She _better_ believe it's me!" a familiar angry voice shouted from the phone. "You don't wanna make me come down there!"

_"WAHHH!"_ the scientist jumped nearly a foot in the air. "L-L-Lady Noire?! I-I'm so sorry! I thought it was a prank!"

"Does this _sound like_ a prank call to you?!" the CPU angrily retorted. "Now listen here, K-Sha is a very good friend of mine, and I don't appreciate you blowing her off like this! So you better get analyzing that evidence on the double!"

"Y-y-yes ma'am! M-my sincerest apologies! I-I'll get right on it!" Lyster babbled.

"Good! And you better not screw it up! Oh, and K-Sha..."

"Yes, Noire?"

"You had better not start making a habit of this!" the tsundere cautioned. "I'm only sticking my neck out here to make sure justice is properly served! All right?"

"Of course, Noire," K-Sha nodded.

"W-we understand," Rei agreed.

"Alright then. Good luck with your investigation."

"Thank you, Noire~! Bye bye!" K-Sha said before closing her phone. She then took the bag containing the Combat Cross and handed it to the scientist.

"A-anyway, we need this t-tested for f-fingerprints, and a-also th-the blood o-on th-the mace itself," Rei instructed.

"Yeah, yeah, I know what to do," the woman sighed. "It's still gonna take a while, so why don't you ladies go do something else?" Just then, the door opened, Willard Heinlein walking in.

"Ah, Miss Ryghts, there you are," the prosecutor greeted. "I was just called by Detective Thomas about what was going on..."

"W-well, let's take this c-conversation out in th-the hallway, s-so the f-forensic analyst c-can d-do her work," Rei suggested.

"Good idea," Lyster muttered under her breath as the trio exited...

_November 13_

_Lastation City Police Headquarters_

_Basement Hallway_

"So, Thomas said you found Miss Rondo's actual weapon?" Willard began.

"W-we did," Rei confirmed. "It was s-stored in an employee's locker at P-Paler Sunscreen..."

"W-what?!" the prosecutor gasped. "But if that's true, how did it end up there?!"

"Exactly," K-Sha spoke up. "It should've been in the evidence locker where that other mace was! In fact... I kinda hate to say it, but maybe somebody switched the weapons in the evidence locker?"

"Th-that's preposterous!" Willard insisted. "The entrance is securely locked, and monitored 24/7! If someone tried to switch the evidence, they'd be on security tape at least!"

"Well, you'll excuse me if I don't take you at your word, Heinlein," Rei shifted to her HDD personality. "How about we check for ourselves?"

"Gladly! I'll take you there myself!" Willard accepted the challenge...

_November 13_

_Lastation City Police Headquarters_

_Evidence Locker_

The actual door to where the evidence was stored was a sturdy chain-link door secure with a lock and chain. Willard promptly walked up to the lock and tugged on the chain, which jiggled but did not give. "See? As secure as ever! You can't even argue that some vampire with super-strength broke in!"

K-Sha looked over the door critically. "Wait a minute..." Walking to the other side, the ex-mercenary pulled at the hinges- which abruptly pulled apart, opening the door! _"Ah-ha!_ I thought so!"

_"What?!"_ Willard screeched in disbelief.

"HAAA-hahahahahaha!" Rei laughed in triumph. "Looks like it wasn't _nearly_ as secure as you thought, worm! So it's very possible that the morning stars were switched!"

"Aaaarrgh!" The white-haired man gritted his teeth. "Damn that stupid detective, he told me everything was fine! He's looking at a pay cut for this oversight!"

"HOLD IT!" K-Sha suddenly shouted. "Um, if that security camera's still working," she pointed at the camera in question, "We should have the culprit on tape, right?"

"...ah, good thinking, Miss K-Sha," Willard calmed somewhat. "Very well then. To the security office!"

"W-wait for me!" Rei said as she jogged to catch up...

_November 13_

_Lastation City Police Headquarters_

_Security Office_

The guard attempted to prevent Rei from entering, only for Willard to state, "She's with me."

The NPC blinked in disbelief. "Sir, with all due respect-"

_"I said she's with me._ And yes, I know who she is."

"...yessir." The guard reluctantly stood aside, allowing Rei and K-Sha to enter. "But she goes berserk and levels the place, it's not my fault..." Rei could only sigh and sweat-drop at this.

"I know how you feel," K-Sha sighed. "There are still some people who think I'm going suddenly whip out my machine gun and fill everyone with lead for a minor slight..."

"You did leave your weapons at the lobby, I hope," Heinlein said as he sat down at the computer to access the camera logs.

"O-of course I did!" the ex-yandere insisted. "I know better than to break the rules at the police station!"

"Just checking," Willard nodded. "Okay, here we are... evidence locker footage... date, November 10. We'll start here and fast forward until we see something suspicious..." This he did, going through the 10th and the 11th... but then the footage blacked out briefly. "Whoa!" He stopped and rewound a bit... "What the heck?! It blacks out around midnight on the 11th and 12th!"

"T-try forwarding it t-to where th-the b-blackout c-clears up," Rei suggested.

"Alright," the prosecutor agreed, doing as told... "looks like it clears up about 12:30..." rewinding to that point, the trio watched closely... suddenly the blackness seemed to be swept aside by a janitor on a ladder, his cap pulled low to hide his eyes.

"There!" K-Sha pointed. "Right behind that guy- I saw wings flapping! I think it was a bat!"

"A bat got in and roosted on the camera?!" Wilard muttered in disbelief.

"Or maybe it was a vampire bat," Rei hypothesized. "If you know what I mean..."

"Oh please," Heinlein ducked his head, "despite what happened in the courtroom earlier today, I'm not going to accept a vampire was involved in the evidence locker break-in without solid proof... anyway, I'm going to have a copy made of this tape. It might be useful for evidence later..."

"Y-you'll g-give us a c-copy too, right?" Rei requested.

"Of course."

*Security Camera Footage has been added to the Court Record.*

_November 13_

_Lastation City Police Headquarters_

_Parking Lot By Front Entrance_

"So what should we do now?" K-Sha asked.

"Well," Rei stretched, "we probably should go back to your apartment for now, and see if we can make anything of the evidence we've gathered..."

*BWEEP! BWEEP! BWEEP! BWEEP!*

_"Wahhh!"_ the lawyer jumped a half-foot in the air. "W-what was th-that?!"

"It's the aura tracker!" K-Sha pulled out the device in question. "It's detected a vampire nearby!"

"I-it did?!" Rei gasped in surprise. "Where does it say?!"

"Umm... this way!" K-Sha pointed the two promptly running in that direction... however, when they came to the corner of a building where the path branched into two alleyways, the schoolgirl came to a stop. "Umm... it seems to have lost the trail..."

"How about you t-take the left alley, and I'll t-take the r-right?" Rei suggested.

"You want us to split up?" K-Sha questioned. "But what if one of us gets ambushed? I have my guns, but..."

"I've g-got this," the bluenette held up the jar of holy water, "a-and my HDD, a-as a last resort."

"...Well, OK," K-Sha agreed after a moment. "Just keep your eyes peeled..."

"I will," Rei promised as they separated...

_November 13_

_Lastation City- Dark Alleyway_

(Doesn't seem like there's many places to hide around here...) the ex-villain thought to herself as she slowly made her way down the alley... She then heard a noise coming from a dumpster a short distance away. Cautiously approaching, Rei readied the holy water, gingerly placing one hand under the lid and lifting it...

-and screaming in surprise as a rat jumped out, which quickly scurried away. "G-good grief, d-don't scare me like that!" Rei put a hand to her chest as she sighed in relief...

Only for something- no, some_one_ to fall on her from behind, causing her to drop the holy water on the ground! _"Ahhhh! HELP!"_ she screamed, only for the mysterious person to choke her by the neck to cut her off. Then the goddess felt a stabbing- no, **biting** pain in her neck! (The vampire! _He's sucking my blood!)_ But due to the pain, she couldn't focus enough to access HDD, as her vision began to dim...

***BLAM!*** A report suddenly rang out, the vampire crying out in pain as he released his victim, Rei putting a hand up to her neck to stop the bleeding... _"You leave her alone, vampire!"_ a familiar voice called out.

_(Uni!)_ Rei realized, hearing more shots ring out, the shadowy figure disappearing from her vision, the lawyer hearing his rapidly fading footfalls, then she was lifted up, a pair of green power-symbol eyes coming into view.

"Rei! Say something! Are you OK?!" Black Sister cried in near-panic. "No, wait, don't talk, I'm gonna get you to the hospital right away! Hold on!" The two began to rapidly rise into the air, the sudden vertigo causing Rei to pass out...

_November 13_

_Lastation City General Hospital_

_Patient Room 39_

Rei Ryghts slowly regained consciousness, staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling, though it seemed a bit out-of-focus... (Oh, my glasses,) she realized, slowly sitting up... only to put a hand to her neck as it throbbed in pain from the sudden movement. But now she could feel a bandage where she'd been bitten... The lawyer then realized that she had also been hooked up to an IV drip. Looking to her left, she could make out a small table where her glasses sat, quickly grabbing them and slipping them on, as someone came through the door- an NPC nurse. "Oh, Miss Ryghts! You're awake! How are you feeling?"

"A little lightheaded..." Rei groaned after a moment. "And my neck hurts... Um, wh-where's Uni? ...a-and K-Sha?"

"They're waiting outside, I'll go get them," the nurse nodded, turning and leaving.

A few minutes later, the two girls came in. "Rei, are you okay?" Uni asked.

"I th-think so..."

"Oh, Miss Rei, I'm so sorry!" K-Sha lamented, tear streaks visible on her face. "This is all my fault! If only we hadn't separated...!"

"N-no, I'm the one who suggested s-splitting up," the lawyer pointed out. "A-at least now we know w-why th-the aura t-tracker lost the t-trail... th-the vampire must've c-climbed up t-to th-the roof..."

"And then he got the drop on you," Uni finished. "Good thing I got finished with my Quest when I did... I'd wanted to help you out with your investigation... I didn't even get a good look at the guy..."

"Y-you helped out p-plenty," Rei countered.

"Indeed you did, Lady Uni," said an NPC doctor as he entered the hospital room. "Fortunately for you, Miss Ryghts, you only lost a little over a pint of blood- not much more than you would donate at a blood drive. Still, I would recommend no strenuous activity for at least 48 hours, and drink plenty of fluids."

"Oh, that reminds me," Uni cut in, "Noire wanted me to tell you that Mr. Heinlein was willing to get the trial delayed until you were better..."

"...but standing in court isn't exactly strenuous activity, is it?" Rei pointed out.

"Not exactly..." the doctor admitted. "But the way your trials are said to turn out sometimes-"

_"Silence, maggot!"_ the ex-villain cut him off with a glare. "This is personal now. I'll stay the night for observation, but come tomorrow morning, I'm heading to the courtroom come hell or high-water! Got it, _worm?!"_

"A-as you wish," the NPC agreed, quickly backing away and exiting.

"Well, I can fly you over to court tomorrow, so you don't overexert yourself getting there," Uni offered.

"That'll work," Rei agreed, before suddenly feeling dizzy, flopping back on her pillow. "I c-could use some w-water, p-please..."

"I'll get some!" K-Sha said, quickly leaving to do just that.

"I'll be heading back to the Basilicom," Uni said. "Noire wanted an update on your condition..."

Rei nodded, waving her off. (Damn vampire... he's going to _pay_ for trying to suck me dry... one way or another, tomorrow I'm going to expose that maggot in court! Hopefully he resists, because I would just _love_ having a justification to transform and kick his undead ass! You just wait... you're going to learn what it mean to cross an ex-final boss!)

_To be continued..._

I almost feel sorry for the vampire now... almost. Anyway, review!


	6. Trial, Day 2 (Part 1)

FINALLY got enough of the chapter written to post up here...

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Trial- Day 2 (Part 1)

Court Record:

Demitri's Autopsy Report

Holy Water

Simone's Footprint

Crime Scene Diagram

Crime Scene Photos

Bloody Mace

Vampire Aura Tracker

Simone's Combat Cross

Security Camera Footage

_November 14, 9:35 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Defendant Lobby No. 4_

"The vampire attacked you?!" Simone gasped in disbelief. "How fortunate for you that Lady Uni intervened when she did...!"

"D-don't I know it," Rei sighed, one hand still favoring the bandage on her neck. "B-but I d-didn't lose th-that much b-blood... I can s-stand in court."

Just then, K-Sha walked in. "Here, Miss Rei, I got some water for you... How are you feeling?"

"I-I'm fine," the lawyer reassured her as she took the water bottle and took a few gulps.

"So, do you have any idea who the vampire might be?" Simone prodded.

"We're fairly certain he's one of the employees at Paler Sunscreen Industries," K-Sha explained. "We found your Combat Cross in one of the lockers in the men's room..."

"But the vampire shouldn't have been able to touch it..." The hunter then snapped her fingers as something occurred to her. "Then again, he could have used that Thomas Hall to carry the whip for him..."

"Th-that's most likely wh-what happened," Rei agreed. Then the doors opened again, revealing none other than Detective Thomas.

"Hey, what's the big idea with you?!" the bearded man snapped. "I got an earful from Mr. Heinlein yesterday about failing to make sure the evidence locker was secure! Are you _trying_ to get my pay cut?!"

"Are you hungry again, Detective?" K-Sha deadpanned. "And just so you know, I was the one that discovered the hinges were broken..."

"And on that note, maggot," Rei slipped into her HDD persona, "didn't you notice something wrong with the door when you opened it to check the evidence the other day?!"

Thomas seemed a bit cowed by the former goddess. "Well," he put a hand behind his head, "I did notice that door seemed to be grinding a bit when I pulled it open, but I thought it just needed some oil... I even went and told the janitor about it..." He suddenly seemed to remember something. "Oh yeah! By the way, we got the autopsy report for Mr. Hall..." He took some papers from his trench coat and handed them to Rei.

*Thomas Hall's Autopsy Report has been added to the Court Record.*

"Hmm..." The lawyer hummed as she began to read, Simone and K-Sha also reading over her shoulders. "What the- fatal loss of blood?!"

"I knew it," Simone muttered. "The vampire must have sucked him dry..."

"And then used his corpse as his puppet to switch the weapons," K-Sha supplemented. "After all, the vampire probably couldn't touch that Combat Cross himself without burning his hands off, right?"

"Exactly," the hunter nodded. "But Thomas Hall, despite being dead, still technically classified as human... He couldn't _wield_ the whip, but carrying it around would be no problem."

"If you say so," Detective Thomas said with a shrug. "Good luck tryin' to prove that in court, though... I still think Mr. Heinlein ain't keen on saying a vampire's involved..."

"And yet, the only way I see this coming to a satisfactory conclusion is if we somehow expose the vampire in court," Simone muttered with her arms crossed. "You didn't even get a glimpse of your attacker, Miss Ryghts?"

"No..." Rei shook her head. "He or she was on me before I even knew what was happening... By the way, did anyone pick up the holy water I dropped?"

"Oh, yeah! I've got it right here," K-Sha pulled out the jug in question. "And I'll try to keep a better eye on it this time..." She then got a glimpse of the clock. "Oh! I think it's about time for trial to start..."

"Let us go, then," Simone nodded. "I'm counting on you to figure out the truth, Miss Ryghts..."

"I-I'll d-do my best," the lawyer nodded.

_November 14, 10:00 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Courtroom No. 3_

"Alright, everyone settle down," the judge banged her gavel. "This court is now in session for the trial of The State v. Simone Rondo. Are the lawyers ready?"

"The prosecution is ready to proceed, Your Honor," Willard Heinlein stated.

"The defense is ready, Your Honor," Rei said.

"So am I!" K-Sha added.

The judge looked over at the defense's bench. "Miss Ryghts, I heard that you were attacked yesterday... I can see you have a bandage on your neck..."

"Y-yes, I was assaulted i-in an a-alleyway d-during the c-course of my investigation y-yesterday," the ex-villain admitted, causing the gallery to murmur slightly. "B-but I only lost a little b-blood, so I c-can stand in c-court today."

"I believe I offered to delay this trial until you were feeling better..." Willard shrugged. "But, if you insist on proceeding, I shall keep my own council."

"Very well," the judge acquiesced, "but I reserve the right to suspend proceedings if you start getting dizzy or you faint, understood?"

"Y-yes ma'am," Rei agreed. "D-don't worry, I've g-got some extra water right here..."

"As long as it isn't that holy water from yesterday," the elder woman muttered. "On that note... Miss K-Sha, I've decided to drop the charge against you, for possession of a dangerous substance. As Lady Noire pointed out, quite vociferously I might add," some light laughter was heard in the audience, "your reaction yesterday clearly indicated you had no idea that the witness would end up immolated by that water."

"Th-thank you, Your Honor," K-Sha bowed her head in gratitude, secretly glad she was keeping the second jar of holy water securely hidden in her backpack.

"Well, now that we've gotten that out of the way," Willard spoke up, "perhaps I could proceed with my open?"

The judge promptly banged her gavel to quiet the gallery. "Alright, go ahead, Mr. Heinlein."

The white-haired man nodded before beginning, "As I'm sure most, if not all of you are aware, yesterday's court session ended rather... violently, with the supposed death of one Thomas Hall. However, the defendant surmised that Mr. Hall was in fact, already deceased, and that his corpse was being manipulated by some sinister force. So I promptly had Hall's body rushed to autopsy in order to uncover the truth."

"And what did the coroner conclude?" the judge pressed.

Willard hesitated for a moment. "...Surprisingly, it seems that Miss Rondo's claim might actually have some merit. According to Dr. Mallard Robertson, Thomas Hall actually died at least 48 hours prior, from bleeding out through the neck."

"B-bleeding out?!" the robed woman gasped in shock, the crowds buzzing in confusion and disbelief. "Order! Order!" the judge cried as she banged her gavel repeatedly. "...Well, I happen to know Dr. Robertson quite well... he started in autopsy not long after I first put on my robes. If he says the victim died of blood loss, then that's what happened. Does he say what manner of weapon was used to pierce the victim's neck?"

"Sadly, he was unable to say conclusively what was used as the murder weapon, due to Mr. Hall's immolation by the holy water," Heinlein lamented.

"HOLD IT!" K-Sha suddenly shouted. "The autopsy report says that it looks like there were two wounds on Mr. Hall's neck right next to each other!" The gallery again murmured in confusion, before being silenced by the judge's gavel.

"Just like a vampire's bite," Simone muttered.

"But again, we can't tell exactly _what_ caused those wounds," the prosecutor countered. "It could have been a vampire's bite... or, it could be that Mr. Hall was simply stabbed twice in the neck with an ice pick, to make it _look like_ a vampire had bitten him."

Rei then slammed her fists on the bench. "Then how do you explain the fact that Mr. Hall was walking and talking at the witness stand yesterday?!"

"The prosecution is willing to concede that some form of necromancy was involved," Willard replied. "Sinister forces are at work, to be certain... but it does NOT definitively disprove that Simone Rondo was responsible for Demitri Paler's death!" The gallery murmured at this. "As has been stated many times before, evidence is everything in a court of law! And to that point, I wish to call the forensic analyst, who will provide us with such evidence! Miss Lyster, if you would please." The spectacled middle-aged brunette from yesterday promptly took the stand. "Please state your full name and occupation for the record."

"Forsythia Ann Lyster. I'm a forensic analyst working for the Lastation Police Department."

"You had some evidence delivered to you from a worker's locker in Paler Sunscreen, did you not?" Willard opined.

"That's right," the woman nodded. "A morning-star whip, as well as fingerprints from the locker it was found in." She lifted up said morning-star in a large evidence bag, causing the crowds to murmur in slight confusion, being silenced by the judge's gavel.

"Please testify to the court about your analysis of this evidence," Heinlein politely requested.

"Yes, Prosecutor," Lyster assented, before beginning, "The morning-star whip was found in the locker of one Al Poker, who apparently works as the janitor at Paler Sunscreen. However, his fingerprints were not found on the whip itself. This would suggest that someone else placed this item in his locker, perhaps even without his knowledge. After all, there was no lock on the latch..."

"Ahh-_choo!"_ Rei abruptly sneezed. "*sniff* I-I'm so sorry f-for that! P-please continue..."

"Your word for today is 'Kleenex', Miss Ryghts," Forsythia muttered under her breath. "*ahem* Anyway, the fingerprints on the handle matched those of the defendant, Simone Rondo, as well as one Thomas Hall, a production line employee."

"And what about the blood on the mace end?" Willard pressed.

"It matches that of the victim, Demitri Paler," Lyster responded. "The small amount suggests that Mr. Paler was struck only once by this weapon, and that it was likely not a lethal blow."

*Simone's Combat Cross updated in Court Record.*

"Which is consistent with our argument, that Miss Rondo only struck down the victim, then left him be," Rei suggested.

"OBJECTION!" Heinlein declared. "Because it was pitch-black out, it could easily be argued that Miss Rondo was carrying _both_ morning-stars with her, using this one to strike down the victim, then the other one to finish him off, before wiping off the handle on the second one to throw suspicion off herself!" The crowds murmured slightly at this.

"Urgh..." K-Sha sweat-dropped. "I can't think of any way to disprove that... can you, Miss Rei?"

"Not yet..." the ex-villain demurred. "P-perhaps we c-could hear about th-the fingerprints o-on the locker, Miss Lyster?"

"Certainly," the forensic analyst nodded. "Put simply, other than Miss Rights' prints on the latch, the only fingerprints we could find were those of the locker's original owner."

*Locker Fingerprints have been added to the Court Record.*

"Um..." K-Sha raised a hand. "Isn't it possible that Mr. Hall only touched the latch himself, and those fingerprints were smudged out of existence when Miss Rei opened it?"

"That is a possibility," Willard nodded. "But it could have also been Miss Rondo's prints that were erased by Miss Ryghts' actions..."

"H-how could you...?!" the schoolgirl protested.

"HOLD IT!" Rei cut her off. "K-Sha, c-calm down... he's j-just d-doing his j-job as the p-prosecutor..."

"Yes, I believe I warned you about irrational outbursts yesterday," the judge cautioned. "Do you have anything else for us, Miss Lyster?"

"Not a thing, Your Honor," the brunette shrugged.

"Then you may step down, witness," Heinlein instructed. "Now I would like to call my next witness to the stand... a person who witnessed the crime from the second floor of the factory, and the one who contacted the police! The prosecution calls Lisa Paler to the stand!"

_To be continued..._

Next, Lisa's testimony! What revelations are to be had? Review!


	7. Trial, Day 2 (Part 2)

Finally got some motivation back, so here's the next part!

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Trial- Day 2 (Part 2)

Court Record:

Demitri's Autopsy Report

Holy Water

Simone's Footprint

Crime Scene Diagram

Crime Scene Photos

Bloody Mace

Vampire Aura Tracker

Simone's Combat Cross

Security Camera Footage

Locker Fingerprints

_November 14, 10:27 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Courtroom No. 3_

"The prosecution calls Lisa Paler to the stand!" Willard announced. Lisa promptly walked into the courtroom, dressed similarly to the other day, but now having a long leather coat draped over her shoulders, her cigarette holder empty. "Please state your name and occupation for the record."

"Certainly. My name is Lisa Belmondo-Paler. I work as executive assistant manager for Paler Sunscreen Industries. And I'm the victim's sister-in-law as well. And fair warning: I tend to get a bit temperamental if I suffer nicotine withdrawal... but I'm aware smoking isn't permitted in the court."

(Explains why she brought the empty holder,) thought Rei, (must be hoping for a placebo effect of some sort...)

"Well, we shall try to refrain from upsetting you too much," Willard assured her. "Though considering that you've lost a family member... it's why I refrained from calling you yesterday."

"Hmph," Lisa shrugged as she sucked on her empty holder, causing a slight whistling sound. "Anyway, may I begin my testimony? I want to get this over with..."

"Of course, Miss Paler," the judge nodded. "Any time you're ready."

"Thank you, Your Honor," the platinum blonde responded politely, before beginning, "Well, that night, Demitri and I were supervising the night shift as usual... but Demitri doesn't do so well with the atmosphere inside the plant when the equipment's running, so he has to go outside on occasion, lest he suffer from diarrhea, or worse..."

"T-too much information!" Rei mildly protested.

"Objection sustained!" the judge agreed. "No need to go into detail on THAT, witness... just focus on detail's surrounding the victim's death."

"...Yes, Your Honor. Anyway..." Lisa took a breath to compose herself. "Demitri went outside like usual, I told him to be careful since the floodlight had burned out... but he said he'd be just outside the door, so nothing to worry about." She chuckled bitterly at this. "So, after making sure none of the workers were slacking off, I went up to my office on the second floor for a smoke. I opened the window so I wouldn't stink up the place too much, but before I could light up, I saw movement outside... It was someone wielding a spike ball on a chain..."

"In other words, a morning-star whip," Willard clarified.

"If that's what it's called... Anyway, I took a closer look and realized that person was beating someone lying on the ground! I tried to scream, but no sound came out, I was so horrified, even though the darkness masked the grisly scene... then the person ran off, and I quickly stumbled over to my phone to call the police..." Lisa sucked on her empty holder again. "Oh, poor Demitri... he didn't deserve that..."

"Did you see any identifying features about the man beating your brother-in-law to death?" Heinlein inquired.

The pale-skinned woman just shook her head. "The only thing I know for certain is that they had long hair... I couldn't make out anything else..."

The judge solemnly shook her head, before stating, "To be frank, Mrs. Paler, your testimony is rather vague at best..."

"With all due respect, Your Honor, that's why I called Thomas Hall to the stand yesterday," Willard pointed out. "His account of events seemed far more reliable, at least at first glance..."

"Maybe something will come up in the cross-examination?" K-Sha ventured.

"Well, I suppose it can't hurt," the judge acquiesced, banging her gavel once. "Go ahead with your cross, Miss Ryghts."

"Yes ma'am," Rei nodded. (But where do I start?) "...Mrs. Paler, if you were so worried about your brother-in-law, why didn't you accompany him outside? Especially if you wanted to have a smoke..."

Lisa visibly hesitated. "Well, to be honest, Demitri doesn't have the highest opinion of me outside of my business savvy... He actually tried to get Vlad to break off relations with me in the past, before we tied the knot, though things have cooled off a bit since then..."

"Your husband pretty much said the same thing when we questioned him yesterday," K-Sha said.

"Yes, one of the few things Vlad and his brother disagreed on," the platinum blonde nodded. "But Vladdie couldn't deny his heart's desire... Demitri even refused to attend the wedding..."

"Bad blood, huh?" K-Sha mused.

"Well, in that case," Rei smirked sinisterly, "how can we trust that _your_ testimony about the victim's death is accurate?"

"E-excuse me?!" Lisa grunted.

"Well, if Demitri was so against you and Vlad being together, that must have been quite a sore spot for you," the ex-villain elaborated with a cruel smirk. "How do we know you didn't hire a hitman to bludgeon the victim to death, and my client was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time?"

"Y-you..." Lisa's eyes went wide at hearing this, her grip on her empty holder tightening until it abruptly snapped in half. **"HOW DARE YOU?!"** The gallery abruptly cried out in shock as the woman suddenly lifted the _entire witness stand_ over her head! "How could you even suggest I would do something so cruel! My poor husband is torn with grief, and you **dare** to suggest I had a hand in his brother's death?!"

_"Kyaaaaa!"_ K-Sha screamed. "I-I think you hit a nerve, Miss Rei...!"

(You think?!) the bluenette thought to herself as sweat beaded on her forehead. (She's a lot stronger than she looks...!)

_"Order! Order! Order!"_ the judge cried as she banged her gavel repeatedly. **"Mrs. Paler!** You will set that witness stand back down _this instant,_ or I will cite you for contempt and have you arrested for damaging public property!"

"Huh?!" Lisa seemed to come to her senses, looking up, before suddenly setting the witness stand back down, turning red with embarrassment. "O-oh dear, I am _so sorry...!_ I-I beg your forgiveness, Your Honor...!"

"Sh-shouldn't that witness stand be bolted to the ground, anyway?" Willard grunted aloud.

"Yes, it should be," the judge acknowledged. "I remember that a witness stand had to be replaced after being broken by an unruly strongman who had just been convicted of murder... I didn't realize it was this one, though. Clearly the contractors that were hired cut a few corners!"

"I feel sorry for those contractors..." K-Sha sweat-dropped. "Her Honor's probably going to have them tossed in a holding cell for shoddy work!"

"N-no comment," Rei sighed, taking a pull from her water bottle. "Mrs. Paler, I-I'm so very sorry f-for upsetting y-you like that... B-but as a d-defense attorney, I have t-to make s-sure all angles are c-covered..."

The platinum blonde heaved a sigh as she crossed her arms. "You've got some nerve, Miss Final Boss... But I suppose you did that just to see my reaction, to prove I wasn't lying earlier... apology accepted."

"Getting back to the case at hand," Willard cut in, "Miss Ryghts, do you have any way of proving that this long-haired person Mrs. Paler saw was not your client? After all, Thomas Hall had short hair, so that rules him out..."

"Unless he was wearing a wig," K-Sha whispered to Rei. "But there's no proof of that, either..."

(And evidence is everything in a court of law,) the lawyer mused. "Y-Your Honor, I need a minute t-to regather my thoughts, a-after Mrs. Paler's recent o-outburst..."

"I have no objection," Willard demurred. "I'm still a little freaked out from that display of strength myself..."

"...Alright, Miss Ryghts," the judge acquiesced, "But try not to take too long, or it's a penalty on your record!"

"I understand," the bluenette nodded. (I have to try and re-examine this case from the beginning... something's been nagging at me, and I need to figure out what it is!) With that, she closed her eyes, going into deep thought...

(Let's start from the murder itself. Demitri Paler was bludgeoned to death by someone wielding a morning-star mace, in order to frame Simone Rondo for the act. From this, we can infer that this person was likely a vampire trying to escape from being destroyed by the hunter. But just committing the act wouldn't have been enough... _what did the culprit do to strengthen the case against Simone Rondo?)_

_*He switched the maces*_

(That's right, Simone's Combat Cross was switched out for the actual murder weapon. But if the guilty party was a vampire, they couldn't touch it without harming themselves... _so who or what did they use to switch the weapons for them?)_

_*Thomas Hall*_

(Of course, Tom Hall. He died from bleeding out through the neck, or in other words, the vampire sucked him dry and then used Hall as a puppet. And given that the Combat Cross was found in the men's locker room, we can reasonably infer that the culprit is male. ...But there's a problem. Security is airtight at the police station, especially at night. _How could Thomas Hall have gotten inside at midnight to switch the maces...?)_

_*He hid inside beforehand*_

(That makes sense. The vampire likely just hid Hall's body somewhere inside the station until the time was right. _But where did he hide Hall at...?)_

_*The medical examiner's office*_

(Of course! Given that Mr. Hall was already dead, no one would have questioned seeing another dead body on a slab at the medical examiner's office! ...But that doesn't help me prove who manipulated his body. _Is there proof that anyone else was at the evidence locker at midnight on November 12th?)_

_*The security camera footage*_

(That's right! There was a man visible on camera when the blackout cleared up! And he had long hair like Lisa Paler described! But his face was obscured by his cap... _But haven't I seen him somewhere before?)_

_*At Paler Sunscreen Industries*_

(Now I remember! The janitor I saw with Vlad and Lisa when I first questioned them! He's a dead ringer for the guy on the camera footage! _And didn't he have another connection to the investigation...?)_

_*The Combat Cross was found in his locker*_

(That's right! And I had to destroy a padlock to get inside, which means he likely knew what was inside, and didn't want anyone to find it! _So how did we discover it?)_

_*The vampire aura tracker*_

(And that fact can only mean one thing!)

**THE JANITOR IS THE REAL VAMPIRE!**

(Yes! It all fits! The vampire worked as a janitor to stay under the radar, hoping that if a hunter came looking, they'd suspect Vlad or Demitri first! It was his insurance policy if he was ever discovered! Of course!) Rei's eyes opened as she smirked in triumph... "Mrs. Paler, I have some evidence to show you. If someone could please cue up the security camera footage from 12:30 AM on November 12th..."

"Certainly," Willard assented."Bailiff, if you would please." The footage was promptly brought up on a holo-screen, showing the moment the man shooed away the bat that had been roosting on the camera.

"HOLD IT!" Detective Thomas suddenly shouted. "That's not our night-shift janitor! Not even close!"

"Are you sure about that, Detective?" Willard asked.

"Sure as shooting a bullseye on the firing range! I know all the personnel here like the back of my hand!" Thomas insisted.

"No... it couldn't be..." Lisa said with wide eyes.

"Do you know this man, witness?" the judge inquired.

"I'm... I'm almost certain that's the janitor who works the day shift at the main factory!" the pale woman elaborated. "But what would he be doing there?!"

"Most likely, he was helping Thomas Hall steal my client's morning-star whip!" Rei declared, slamming her fists on the bench for emphasis. "After all, said morning-star was found in _his locker!"_

_"WHAAAAAATT?!"_ Lisa screeched in shock, causing the gallery to chatter.

"Order! _ORDER!"_ the judge cried, as her repeatedly banged her gavel. "Mrs. Paler, calm yourself!"

"OBJECTION!" Willard suddenly yelled. "Miss Ryghts, would you mind telling me how these two men could have gotten in the police station so late at night?!"

"Well, it's not a stretch to think that the man in the camera passed himself off as the night-shift janitor, and was lucky enough to avoid people like Detective Thomas," she nodded toward the bearded man, "who would have seen through the deception!"

"And what about Thomas Hall? Do you have an explanation for that?" the prosecutor challenged.

"I do," Rei nodded. "After all, Prosecutor Heinlein, you've already conceded that necromancy was involved in this case..."

"OBJECTION! How does that prove anything?!" Willard shot back.

"HOLD IT! Let me finish, maggot!" the ex-villain slammed her fists on the bench again. "Now tell me, where did you find Mr. Hall yesterday when he got lost?"

"Where did I find him?" the white-haired man's face contorted in confusion. "Well, I believe it was over by the medical examiner's office... _Gaahhhhh!"_ he screamed as realization dawned!

"Exactly, worm," Rei smirked as she crossed her arms. "After all, if Tom Hall was already dead, no-one would bat an eye seeing his corpse on a slab at the medical examiner's office!"

"G-good heavens! You make a good point, Miss Ryghts!" the judge gasped incredulously. "It would indeed be possible for that undead man to pose as just another cadaver!" the audience chattered in disbelief at this revelation, forcing the robed woman to gavel them down again.

"Are you saying that janitor is the one responsible for poor Demitri's death?!" Lisa growled in barely restrained anger.

"At the very least, he's an accessory to tampering with evidence!" Rei said with a flourish of her pointer finger. "Seeing as you're technically his boss, Mrs. Paler, perhaps you could have him brought in for questioning?"

"Gladly!" the platinum blonde nodded. "I'll have that miscreant down here in no more than a half-hour! If you'll excuse me..." She promptly stomped out of the courtroom, pulling out her phone to make a call...

"...Well then, I suppose we'll take a recess while this mystery janitor is summoned," the judge stated. "We'll reconvene in 30 minutes, so don't wander too far!" With that, she banged her gavel to signal temporary adjournment.

_To be continued..._

Up next, the confrontation with the true culprit! Read and review!


	8. Trial, Day 2 (Part 3)

Time to finally expose the vampire to sunlight, at least figuratively speaking...

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Trial- Day 2 (Part 3)

Court Record:

Demitri's Autopsy Report

Holy Water

Simone's Footprint

Crime Scene Diagram

Crime Scene Photos

Bloody Mace

Vampire Aura Tracker

Simone's Combat Cross

Security Camera Footage

Locker Fingerprints

_November 14, 10:51 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Defendant Lobby No. 4_

"The janitor... it makes perfect sense," Simone nodded. "A low-profile job where your bosses are dressed in garb traditionally associated with vampires... perfect for a blood-sucker trying to avoid discovery."

"The question is, how do we prove that he killed Demitri Paler, or even that he's a vampire?" K-Sha inquired worryingly. "With the evidence we've got, all we can really prove is that he tampered with evidence..."

"Do you not still have the aura tracker on your person?" the hunter asked.

"We d-do, b-but it's not admissible i-in c-court," Rei pointed out. "Y-you all b-but said so y-yourself..."

"I have that jug of holy water," K-Sha stated, "But as soon as I bring that out, Her Honor will probably take it away as a dangerous substance, given what happened yesterday..."

Rei blinked as a light bulb suddenly went off in her head. "B-but what if it was in a d-different c-container?"

"A different container?" Simone blinked. "You mean, so the judge wouldn't realize it was holy water?"

"But how are we going to do that?" K-Sha asked in mild confusion.

"Easy," the lawyer said as she brought the other two women in close. "Here's what we're going to do... mumble mumble whisper mumble whisper whisper..."

_November 14, 11:23 AM_

_Lastation City District Court_

_Courtroom No. 3_

"Settle down, everyone, we're back in session," the judge stated as she banged her gavel, the gallery swiftly quieting. "Mr. Heinlein, has the witness arrived yet?"

"Detective Thomas told me they just arrived at the courthouse," the prosecutor assured her. "It shouldn't be long now..." Just then, the court room doors opened, revealing Thomas, Lisa, and a brown-haired janitor dressed in an orange uniform and a white baseball cap with an orange bill. "Ah, excellent timing, Detective, Mrs. Paler."

"Indeed," the judge agreed. "Any longer and I might've held you in contempt, Mr. Thomas..."

"N-no need for that, ma'am!" the bearded man nervously saluted. "Harold Thomas always gets his mark!"

Meanwhile, Lisa and the janitor were conversing in hushed tones, though the woman's angry expression and liberal use of her pointer finger made it clear who was leading the conversation. Lisa then pointed to the witness stand, the janitor nodding and walking swiftly to take his place. "Ah, hello everyone," the man muttered nervously.

"Witness, state your name and occupation," Willard ordered.

"Ah... I'm Al Poker. I work as a janitor at the sunscreen factory."

"Witness, you need to speak up," the judge declared, banging her gavel for emphasis. "I can barely hear you! And also, take off your hat! It's impolite to be wearing any sort of headgear in a court of law!"

"Y-yes ma'am. So sorry ma'am," the man complied, removing his hat, revealing dull brown eyes. "I've, ah, *ahem* I've never stood in a courtroom before," he raised his voice slightly.

"Do you know why you have been summoned here, witness?" Heinlein asked pointedly.

"W-well, according to Mrs. Lisa, you guys think I stole evidence or something..."

"Well, to be blunt, Mr. Poker," Rei spoke up, "a weapon belonging to my client was found in your clothes locker at work. But this weapon had already been surrendered to police custody!" She slammed her fists on the bench. "So how did it end up in your possession?"

"M-my locker?" the janitor sweat-dropped. "But I don't get it... I usually have a padlock on that thing..."

"Detective Thomas?" Willard turned to his subordinate.

"Look, as far as I know," Harold shrugged, "the forensics team didn't find any padlock, broken or otherwise..."

"Ahh-_choooo!"_ Rei sneezed again, the force nearly causing her head to hit the bench... As she tried to right herself, her arm swung out and knocked her water bottle off her bench! "O-oh no, I s-spilled my water! I-I'm so very sorry, Your Honor! P-please d-don't hold me in contempt for g-getting the floor wet...!"

"Don't worry, I'll clean it up!" K-Sha said, quickly ducking beneath the bench.

"Calm down, defense. I'm not about to hold you in contempt for what was clearly an accident," the judge deadpanned. "Bailiff, get a handkerchief for Miss Ryghts, please." The NPC did as ordered, Rei gratefully taking the kerchief and blowing her nose.

"I'd mop that up for you, if I worked here," Al Poker muttered.

"Yes, about that," Willard spoke up, "Another reason you are suspected of tampering of evidence, is that your likeness was seen on video from the evidence locker's security camera, on midnight of the 12th!" The holo-screen popped up, showing the footage in question.

"Uh, wow..." Al sweat-dropped. "Yeah, I guess that kinda looks like me... But y'know, it's in black and white, and the face is obscure. Y'can't prove that's really me..."

_"*HONK*_ OBJECTION!" Rei cried after she finished blowing her nose. "*sniffle* The hat that the man on camera is wearing is a dead ringer for the one you're currently holding in your hands!"

"B-but! But this's a really cheap cap that you can buy anywhere!" the janitor protested. "You can ask any of my co-workers! Heck, how do you know Tom Hall wasn't tryin' to frame me or whatever?"

"A valid point," Willard nodded. "However, Mr. Hall couldn't have broken into the evidence locker all by his lonesome, either..."

"Y-yeah, well, do I look like someone who's strong enough to break the hinges on the locker door?" Poker said.

Rei blinked a few times as if realizing something, then chuckled sinisterly. "Now that's strange, Mr. Poker... How did you that it was the _hinges_ that were broken? After all, if someone was told that a locker was broken into, they would assume the _lock_ was broken, not the hinges!" She slammed her fists on the bench. "That detail was never revealed to the public! So how did YOU know that, worm?!"

"Aaaack!" Poker cried as he hid his face behind his hat, the gallery murmuring in disbelief before being gaveled down. "S-shoot! OK, OK, you got me! I... I helped Tom Hall steal the evidence!"

"Y-you fool! How could you?!" Lisa yelled in disbelief.

"Order! Order! Mrs. Paler, calm yourself!" the judge ordered. "Witness, you have better have a good explanation for this!"

"Yes, why would you help Mr. Hall rob the evidence locker?" Rei asked rhetorically, as K-Sha set her water bottle back up on the bench.

"I-I... I was coerced!" the janitor stuttered, sweating. "Look, when Tom told me he wanted help getting into the evidence locker, I said 'no way'... but then another figure just... appeared behind him, all covered in shadow! A-and then he and Tom start talkin' at the same time, and I realized he was just the shadow's puppet! And then the shadowy guy shows off some sharp fangs! Believe me, I got the message loud and clear... either I help willingly, or I get my blood sucked dry and help unwillingly! So I took door number one!" The gallery muttered in shock and confusion at this.

"Order!" the judge banged her gavel. "Why didn't you tell anyone about this sooner?!"

"Like anybody would've believed me?!" Poker protested. "I mean, sure, this gal on trial's supposed to be a vampire hunter, but everyone thought SHE was crazy, too!"

"...The witness makes a valid point," Willard conceded. "So you didn't see any other identifying features of this supposed vampire?"

"Nothin' other than the fact he had long hair and was about my height," Al shrugged. "Other than that, I got nothin'!"

"So why did they need your help anyway?" K-Sha asked.

"C-cause I had to pose as the janitor to let the vampire in!" Poker stuttered slightly. "And no, he kept himself in shadow so I couldn't identify 'im! Th-then I had to cover up the camera while he and Tom Hall did the dirty deed!"

"Hmmm..." the judge pondered. "What do you make of the witness's testimony, prosecution?"

"It's certainly a doozy," Willard shrugged. "It seems rather hard to believe, to be honest..."

"I agree with Mr. Heinlein, for once," Rei asserted. "I think we should apply Occam's razor to this scenario."

"Occam's razor...?" K-Sha looked over to Rei in mild confusion.

"The explanation that uses the fewest assumptions is usually the correct one," the horned lawyer elaborated. "Why would the vampire need Poker to let him in the police station, when he could use his shadow-ability to easily sneak in himself? And why would he have Poker cover the camera, when he could easily use a bat to do the same? In fact, might I remind the court that it was a bat that Mr. Poker was seen brushing off the camera!" The audience murmured slightly.

"What exactly is your point, Ryghts?" Heinlein asked pointedly.

"My point is this," Rei shot back, "that the man who posed as the police station's janitor and covered the security camera, IS in fact the vampire himself!"

"WHAT?!" Poker cried out. "You think I'M a vampire?! No way! It's broad daylight out! If I was a blood-sucker, I'd have burned to ashes or something by now...!"

"OBJECTION!" Rei slammed her fists on the bench. "According to our resident vampire expert," she nodded toward Simone, "sufficiently powerful vampires are only _weakened_ by the sun, not destroyed outright! And on that note, there's the fact that you work at a sunscreen factory, and that your uniform covers nearly your entire body, perhaps to protect you from the sun!"

"Oh come on!" Al protested. "This's the standard uniform issued for janitors at my workplace anyway! And yeah, I use sunscreen because I burn easy... but that does NOT make me a vampire!"

"OBJECTION!" Willard cut in. "I think that's about enough of this farce, Ryghts! You know the rules of the court as well as I do... _'In a court of law, evidence is everything.'_ But what you have presented is only _circumstantial_ at best!"

"...I must concur with the prosecution here," the judge nodded. "If you cannot present solid proof that this man before us is a vampire, or the man who killed Demitri Paler, then withdraw your argument or suffer a massive penalty!"

Rei heaved a sigh as she grabbed her water bottle, ostensibly to take a drink... "Well, in that case... Whoops!" She abruptly slipped, barely catching herself on the bench, which caused some water to fly out of the bottle, sprinkling on Al Poker's arm...

-which abruptly caught aflame! _"EYOOOWW! Hot hot hot!"_ the janitor screamed as he dropped his hat and frantically brushed the fire away, which fortunately soon extinguished, leaving his arm barren and slightly burnt.

"What in the-?!" Willard gasped. "Oh, don't tell me...!"

"Hmhmhmhmm... _HAAAA-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"_ Rei let loose with an evil laugh as she stood straight, crossing her arms. "That's right, my earlier accident was simply a sleight of hand, so K-Sha could discreetly replace the water in my bottle with consecrated holy water!"

"Not the holy water again!" the judge groaned. "Don't you remember what happened yesterday, defense?"

"OBJECTION! Don't _you_ remember what my client said yesterday, Your Honor?" Rei pointed. "That holy water only sets people on fire if they have a 'dark aura'! If Al Poker was just a normal human, the water would have only gotten him wet! Isn't that right, witness? Or should I say... _vampire?"_

The man at the witness stand was silent for a moment, his head bowed... then he began to chuckle sinisterly, before raising his head up and spreading his arms, laughing madly as his eyes glowed red, his hair spreading as if lifted up by an unseen breeze, his mouth showing two long, sharp canines! "AHHAHAHAHAHA! Well played, Rei Ryghts, well played indeed! I must congratulate you, it seems you have solved the case!" The gallery gasped in shock and fear.

"So it was YOU all along!" Simone rose from the defendant's chair. "I blame myself for this... had only my first strike been more accurate, this whole incident would not have come to pass! But now we know the truth!"

"You bastard! You killed my dear brother-in-law!" Lisa yelled angrily. "Consider yourself _fired,_ Poker!"

"Wasn't personal, ma'am," the now-exposed vampire said. "He was just in the wrong place at the right time..."

"You sound awfully relaxed for someone who's just been exposed as a double-murderer!" K-Sha growled. "After all, you also sucked that poor Tom Hall dry and made him your puppet!"

"And then you tried to suck my blood as well, peon!" Rei pointed to the bandage on her neck. "Did you seriously think I would let you get away after that, maggot?!"

"I suppose not," Poker shrugged. "I admit I wasn't expecting that CPU to suddenly show up... had I been just a fraction slower, she'd have ruined everything then and there! But no matter, I still got what I needed for my plan..."

"What plan?!" Willard demanded. But suddenly, there was a sound like a low _woosh_ outside, the courtrooms' lighting suddenly becoming slightly dimmer... "W-what in the?!"

"Your Honor!" one of the bailiffs shouted. "I-it's become pitch-black outside!"

"What?! B-but that's impossible!" the robed woman stammered. "It's high noon!"

**"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!"** Al Poker laughed in triumph. "You may have exposed me, but too little, too late! _Eternal night_ has fallen upon Lastation! Now my fellow creatures of the night can prowl and prey with impunity! And soon the night shall spread to cover all of Gamindustri as well!"

_"Seize that creature!"_ Willard ordered, the bailiffs promptly lunging at the janitor, only for him to dissolve into a swarm of bats which scattered through the courtroom causing everyone to duck and cover! The swarm then flew out the courtroom doors, Al Poker's laughter echoing through the chamber...

"M-my word..." the judge gaped in disbelief. "I would never have believed it, had I not just seen it with my own eyes..."

"Me neither, Your Honor," Willard agreed, looking quite shaken.

"S-same here," Forsythia Lyster and Harold Thomas said in unison.

"Your Honor," Rei spoke up again, "A-at this t-time, sh-shouldn't you render y-your verdict?"

"Wha...? O-oh, yes, of course, the verdict!" Regaining her composure, the judge promptly banging her gavel. "*ahem* On the charge of aggravated murder in the first degree, this court herby finds the defendant, Miss Simone Rondo...

**NOT GUILTY**

"And now I order the defendant's immediate release, so that she may do her job and stop that vampire!"

"The prosecution has no objection!" Willard concurred. "Please do all in your power to stop this eternal night!"

"I shall," Simone promised. "Miss Lyster, my whip, if you would, please..."

"Y-yes, here you are!" the spectacled woman nodded, handing over the evidence bag, Simone promptly taking out her Combat Cross and hooking it to her belt.

"Here, Simone! There's still some holy water left in this jug," K-Sha said as she handed the item to the hunter.

"Thank you, K-Sha," Simone smiled and nodded, before turning to Rei. "Miss Ryghts, you've already done so much for me, I feel greedy asking this... but perhaps you could lend your assistance in this hunt? If you still possess your power as a final boss, it would help immensely..."

"I give my assistance gladly," the ex-villain nodded. "After all, I still have to pay that maggot back for sucking my blood!"

"Miss Ryghts, with all due respect, are you sure you can fight in your condition?" Willard inquired.

"For your information, Heinlein, my HDD has a natural healing factor," Rei stated. "By the time we catch up to that blood-sucker, this pinprick'll be nothing but a faint memory..."

"I'm coming too!" K-Sha declared. "I'm a lot stronger now than back when we fought in The Order! I can even transform like Noire and Uni can!"

Simone just chuckled. "Very well, K-Sha, I can see the determination in your eyes. Perhaps it'll be like old times, friend."

"Alright, let's go!" Rei declared with a flourish of her pointer finger. "Time to show this vampire he messed with the wrong CPU!"

"Right!" With that, the trio ran out of the courtroom, the gallery cheering them on...

"Go get 'em!" Detective Thomas encouraged.

"We're counting on you!" Lyster added.

"Give that bastard as much pain as he did to Demitri!" Lisa yelled after them.

"We will!" the three women shouted back...

_To be continued..._

Seems that Al Poker had far more sinister plans than anyone realized! Will Rei and others be able to stop him? Stay tuned!


	9. The Hunt (Part 1)

I've been busy with yard work, but I've got enough written to post again!

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

The Hunt- Part 1

(AKA Neptunevania: Al Poker's Curse)

_November 14, 12:15 PM_

_Lastation Southern Coast_

"Damn maggot moves fast for a blood-sucker!" Chaos Heart growled as she flew through the star-less pitch-black sky, carrying Simone Rondo in her arms. Gold Form K-Sha was flying alongside them, using both the vampire aura tracker and her own eyepiece to track their target's movements. Uni had stayed behind to inform Noire of what had transpired, and help keep the citizens from panicking.

"It's possible he could have teleported once he escaped the confines of the courtroom," Simone theorized.

"Well, the aura tracker says we're getting closer now," K-Sha said. Looking up, the ex-mercenary saw a strange shape in the distance, using her eyepiece to zoom in... "What the... is that a... castle?! But there shouldn't be any castles in this area!"

_(Music- Simon's Theme- Super Castlevania IV)_

"The vampire's stronghold," Simone stated. "We had better start flying lower, no doubt Al Poker has a welcoming committee waiting for us..." Sure enough, a flock of what appeared to be bats suddenly flew out of the castle, before revealing themselves to be winged demons!

_"Incoming!"_ K-Sha cried as she cocked her golden machine guns and opened fire.

"Aim for their wings, K-Sha!" Simone shouted. This the Gold Third member did, causing many of the fiends to fall from the sky. "Ryghts, release me! We're sitting ducks like this!"

"Fine, but don't blame me if you break a leg!" Rei acquiesced, dropping the blonde and promptly firing a red ball of energy at some approaching demons, blowing one apart and causing the others to scatter! Meanwhile, Simone went into a combat roll upon hitting the ground, coming up into a kneeling position, quickly unslinging her Combat Cross and whipping it at a demon that had fallen, making it explode!

"Watch out! It's the Vampire Killer!" one of the demons warned, the others forming a defensive line.

"My reputation precedes me, does it?" the femme hunter smiled grimly. "But it matters not! I shall strike down each and every one of you!" She promptly lashed out with her whip again...

Back in the sky, Rei had summoned her weapon, using it to swat down any demon that flew too close to K-Sha as she continued to shoot the fiends down... at least until her guns ran dry. "Oh no! I need to reload!"

"I'll handle them!" Chaos Heart assured as she concentrated energy in her weapon, then swinging, unleashing an angry red wave that cut several of the demons in half!

"They're too strong for us! Retreat!" The remaining winged fiends swiftly turned and fled back toward the castle.

"Good work, you two!" Simone shouted from the ground, having dispatched the majority of the demons around her. "But this was just the vanguard! The battles will become harder from here on out!"

"I'll have to try and conserve my ammo then," K-Sha muttered as she finished reloading, she and Rei descending to the ground.

"What about that thing floating behind you?" Chaos Heart noted her companion's weapons apparatus.

"That's my trump card," the schoolgirl explained, "I'd rather save it for the vampire himself..."

"If that machine is as armed as I suspect, it'll definitely cause some bruises for that fiend," Simone stated. "Right, let us press forward! We have no time to waste!"

_November 14, 12:38 PM_

_Al Poker's Castle_

_Castle Courtyard_

Chaos Heart easily bashed the gates open with her weapon, the trio entering cautiously. The courtyard appeared to be empty, save a lone suit of armor standing near the center. As they approached, however, it suddenly began to move, holding up its shield while lifting an axe over its shoulder.

"Possessed armors..." Simone groaned. "Gonna take a while to wear down, even with my whip..."

"Well, how about this then?!" K-Sha stated as she brandished an RPG launcher, taking aim and firing at the armor. The explosive hit dead center, blowing the suit of armor into so many pieces of shrapnel.

"Well, that works," the hunter shrugged.

_(Music- Bloody Tears- Castlevania Judgment)_

"Curses! The ambush failed!" a demonic voice hissed. _"Get them!"_ Several creatures suddenly emerged from the brush and charged at the group! They included undead skeletons, hellhounds, and several of the winged imps from earlier.

"Play dead!" Rei growled as she knocked a few hellhounds through the air with her weapon.

"Go, Twinbits!" K-Sha declared, said Twinbits assaulting the demonic undead army with several energy waves, before blasting them with massive laser beams!

"...Impressive, K-Sha. You have gotten stronger," Simone mused as she smashed some skeletons into bone piles with her morning-star whip.

"The red one is the most dangerous!" a demon hissed. "Release the Cerberus!" A gate at the other end of the courtyard opened, revealing a large, black, three-headed dog, which immediately charged at K-Sha!

"Oh no you don't!" The schoolgirl cried as she opened fire with her golden guns, only for the beast to easily leap above her line of fire, coming down and slamming K-Sha to the ground with it's front paws!

_"K-Sha!"_ Simone screamed as she ran over, despite knowing she wouldn't make it in time... but before the Cerberus could tear out K-Sha's jugular with it's sharp teeth, a loud report was heard as a bright beam lanced through the center head, causing the beast to recoil and flip over backward! "W-what was that?!"

"Ta-da! It's Lastation's number one sniper, Black Sister!" the CPU Candidate announced as she flew onto the scene, her gun at the ready.

"About damn time you showed up, Uni!" Chaos Heart growled as she swept aside a few skeletons with her weapon. Seeing the Cerberus right itself, she quickly lunged and bashed in the left head's skull with her weapon, while Simone did the same to the right head with her Combat Cross. The beast collapsed and shuddered, before going still forever.

"Hey, you alright, K-Sha?" Black Sister asked as she helped the Gold Third member to her feet.

"Y-yeah, thanks," the ex-mercenary nodded, a bit too shook up to ask about Noire's whereabouts.

"Another CPU?! What madness is this?" one of the demons said in dismay.

"Hold the line!" another encouraged. "We must not let them reach the Master!"

Hearing that caused Rei to realize something. "Hey Rondo, where do you think that vampire's holed up at, anyway?"

"Hmm..." Simone pondered. "If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say... there," she pointed to the highest spire, "at the highest, furthest point of the castle."

"All I needed to hear," the goddess nodded. "Uni, cover for me! I'm going to pay that peon a visit!" With that, she spread her wings and ascended rapidly...

"Stop right there!" an orange-colored gargoyle blocked her path, leading a troupe of winged imps. "You will never reach the Master, we will not allow it!" The other demons roared in agreement.

Rei just growled as her weapon was engulfed in red energy... _"Get out of my way, flying maggots!"_ She swung, the resulting energy wave cutting the gargoyle in half diagonally, as well as taking out a good number of imps! The CPU wasted no time flying through the gap that had been created...

"...on second thought," one of the surviving demons muttered, "Perhaps we should let the Master deal with her."

The other imps grunted in agreement.

_To be continued..._

Next, the confrontation with the vampire himself! Will Rei prevail, or will the eternal night endure forevermore?!


	10. The Hunt (Part 2)

And now, it's time for the FINAL BATTLE!

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

The Hunt- Part 2

(AKA Neptunevania: Al Poker's Curse)

_November 14, 1:00 PM_

_Al Poker's Castle_

_Throne Room_

It was deathly quiet compared to the chaos in the courtyard, only the sound of Chaos Heart's feet touching the ground being heard after flying in through the window. Slowly the CPU began to advance through the chamber, holding her weapon at the ready... "I can sense your presence, vampire... reveal yourself!"

A low, evil chuckle was heard, Rei turning to her right... and there was Al Poker, lounging lazily on a tall throne, a wineglass in one hand... He was no longer clad in his janitor's uniform, but now dressed in attire more befitting of a classic vampire... namely, a white dress shirt, black slacks and matching dance shoes, and a blood-red cape tied around his neck. "Miss Ryghts," he spoke, his voice smooth as velvet, "I must say, you arrived earlier than expected. I barely had time to get comfortable..."

"We have a device that tracks your evil aura, worm," Rei explained. "How do you think we found your locker where you hid the Combat Cross?"

"So that's how you found it. And then you destroyed my padlock to get in. Naughty, naughty," Al smirked.

"Can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs," Chaos Heart shot back. "You should know, given the shit_ you_ pulled to cover your tracks! What I did was a technicality in comparison!"

"True enough," the vampire conceded. "Still, in a way, I'm glad you were the defense lawyer for that hunter... you gave me exactly what I needed to complete my plans. Not to mention, I get to see your HDD form in person... how delectable." He licked his lips, causing the bluenette to shudder in disgust.

"Pathetic worm... no, _despicable monster!_ Your kind doesn't belong in this world!" Rei declared.

"Ah, but it is not by my own hand that I come to the world of the living," Poker countered. "Rather, it is the darkness in the hearts of men that calls me... those who wish to pay me tribute!"

"Tribute?!" the CPU cried in disbelief. "You mean like the lifeblood that you suck out of men and women alike? When you turn them into thralls and make them your slaves?!"

"You're one to talk, Rei Ryghts," Al chuckled as he sipped at his wine. "After all, did you not try to enslave all of Gamindustri a few games ago?"

"Your words are as empty as your soul!" Rei shot back. "I didn't ask for this power, you know... it was thrust on me! But at least now I do my best to serve the common people, like a proper CPU should! But mankind ill needs a ruler such as yourself!" She accentuated this last statement with her pointer finger.

The vampire frowned at this, tossing aside his wineglass, which shattered on the floor as he stood to his full height. "What is a man," he growled, "naught but a miserable little pile of secrets! But enough banter, let us dance! And I shall lead!" With that, he disappeared in a brief beam of light...

_(Music- Nothing To Lose- Castlevania: Harmony of Despair)_

Chaos Heart did a quick 360-degree spin, and sure enough, the vampire was there launching a mid-sized fireball, which the CPU easily overpowered with an energy ball of her own, hitting Al square in the chest and pushing him back a ways. "The old 'teleport and attack from behind' trick? Really?" she deadpanned.

"It was worth a try," Poker shrugged, before teleporting again... only to reappear _right in front_ of Rei, driving a knee into her groin and grabbing her neck as she doubled over! He then opened his jaws, going for the jugular...

(Oh no you don't!) thought the bluenette as she pulled herself backwards, thrusting her leg into Al's midsection and flipping him onto his back behind her! "Not _this_ time, maggot!" she growled as she righted herself, only to realize that her enemy had vanished again...

The CPU suddenly felt heat under her feet, jumping back as a pillar of fire erupted where she had just been standing! She weaved and twisted as several more fire pillars burst from the floor... (He's trying to box me in!) she realized, before suddenly feeling pain in her left arm as Poker slashed at her with a rapier!

Chaos Heart turned and blocked a stab with her own weapon... despite the difference in size, she was finding it hard to push the rapier away, so she simply took to the air to get some distance, firing a few blasts which were evaded as Al teleported again. Out of the corner of her eye, the goddess saw the vampire reappear a short distance away, launching a spiraling storm of fireballs at her-

-which crashed and extinguished uselessly against her stone shield. "Damn," Al muttered as he cautiously approached, only to get grabbed from behind as Rei slammed him face-first into the shield!

"You may be able to teleport, fool," Chaos Heart crowed, "but I can move fast enough to make it _seem like_ I'm teleporting!" She slammed Poker's head into the stone again, but he dissolved into a swarm of bats before she could continue, which reformed a short distance away. Al then charged with his rapier pointed forward, but Rei blocked with her weapon, the two then exchanging blows like an old-fashioned sword duel.

Chaos Heart hissed as her adversary landed a hit on her upper left arm, drawing some blood. Jumping back, she declared, "I grow bored of this. _LIGHT OF..."_

Al Poker's eyes went wide with fear.

_"ABSOLUTION!"_

_November 14, 1:14 PM_

_Outside Al Poker's Castle_

The top of the tallest spire of the castle was suddenly destroyed by a pillar of red light, causing everyone fighting in the courtyard to turn and look. _"Masteeeerr!"_ Several of the demons cried. However, a swarm of bats was seen descending from the destruction, swiftly reforming into Poker's human form.

"Don't think you can get away _that_ easily, worm!" Chaos Heart declared as she emerged from the dust and smoke, swiftly flying down with an overhead slash, which Al just managed to block with his rapier. Rei gritted her teeth as she pushed downward, sending the vampire careening towards the water, then firing an energy ball after him...

Only for Poker's cape to reshape into a pair of leathery wings, allowing him to pull up and avoid the blast. Growling in frustration, Rei hurled her weapon at the bloodsucker, who simply batted it aside with his sword, only to suddenly be hit with an elbow to the gut! "Gotcha, bastard!" The goddess then grabbed Poker by the chest, his body suddenly enveloped in red energy as he screamed in pain... He was then sent flying away a short distance before the energy detonated, falling limply from the smoke cloud that resulted, Chaos Heart following up with a double-footed kick that sent Poker plunging into the water with a small geyser!

Meanwhile, all fighting in the courtyard had halted as everyone observed the fight between Al and Rei. "Wow, she's really kicking butt, huh?" Uni observed.

"Seems sucking Miss Rei's blood didn't increase his power that much," K-Sha mused.

"Maybe..." Simone said with eyes narrowed.

"Impossible!" a demon gasped in dismay. "The Master cannot fall so easily!" Several others grunted in hesitant agreement...

Chaos Heart slowly floated down until her feet almost touched the surface of the water, trying to look down below... "C'mon, maggot," she muttered, "You can't play dead forever..." Just then, the water erupted a few yards away, Al Poker gasping for breath as he flipped onto a small flat rock. He had lost his rapier, and his cape and clothes looked somewhat tattered. "Pathetic, vampire," the CPU crossed her arms as she slowly floated closer, "Even after sucking my blood, you're only barely surviving my attacks..."

Poker chuckled as he stood straight and cracked his neck. "Impressive, Ryghts. It's clear that you still retain much of your power as a final boss, even after your defeat by the other CPUs... But you of all people should know this about final boss fights..."

"What's that, peon?" Rei raised an eyebrow.

"There is always... _a second phase!"_ With that, Al assumed the classic DBZ 'power-up' pose. _"Now look upon my true form, and despair!_ Rrrrrooooo**ooohhhhhh!"** The vampire suddenly bulked up _massively,_ shredding his clothes off his body as his skin turned green, his head becoming snout-like as goat's horns grew out the top, his eyes turning completely blood red!

_(Music- Black Night- Castlevania: The Arcade)_

"HOLY SHIT!" Rei recoiled at the sight of the transformation. (He... he's _huge!)_

_"Uh-oh...!"_ Uni and K-Sha said in unison.

"I knew it," Simone deadpanned.

The transformed vampire chuckled sinisterly at his adversary's reaction. **"Yes,"** he spoke in a guttural tone, **"time to die!"** He then roared as he launched himself at Rei... **"You're mine!"** The goddess rapidly ascended into the air to avoid the charge... only for Poker to slam into her from the right, smashing her into the castle's outer wall, causing a small indent. **"What was that about barely surviving?"**

Chaos Heart responded by blasting out the wall behind her, causing the two to fall into the castle, the CPU pulling in the same direction as their fall, just managing to throw the monster off her, before turning over and blasting her foe to keep him off her. Al simply shrugged off the blasts, hitting Rei with a massive punch that sent her flying back outside! He then flew after her to follow up with another devastating blow-

-only for the CPU to summon her weapon and block just in time. "Not bad, worm," she grunted, "you've gone from lying in the dirt to crawling through it..."

**"We'll see who eats dirt!"** Poker taunted, thrusting forward with his fist, the sheer force sending Rei flying back uncontrollably, crashing into the cliffside near the top! But then a significant chunk of cliff was vaporized by a red sphere of energy, Chaos Heart flipping back and landing with both feet on terra firma, her weapon at the ready. The vampire charged forward again, Rei quickly rolling out of his path, then turning and unleashing an energy wave from her weapon, hitting Poker in the back and eliciting a short yelp of pain.

(Good, so he's not invincible,) thought Rei as she took to the air again... only for Poker to appear _above_ her, smashing the goddess with a double-fisted down swing, which sent her through the edge of the cliff and into the water!

**"How do you like it, Rei Ryghts? Is it refreshing?"** Al taunted his fallen opponent... only to suddenly get pelted with several bullets! Raising an arm to ward off the attack, he looked up to see Gold Form K-Sha, her twin guns smoking with discharge. **"Foolish girl, do you wish to die first?!"** He opened his mouth and fired an energy beam...

"No, YOU die first!" declared Black Sister as she flew up from behind K-Sha, overpowering Poker's beam with her own blast and hitting him square in the face! The monstrous bloodsucker recoiled slightly as he roared in pain, covering his face with his hands! "He's all yours, K-Sha!"

"Roger, Uni! I will now annihilate the enemy! _Full Weapon Attack!"_ the ex-mercenary declared as 'Drive Away' began playing, blasting Poker with both machine guns, then flying up and intoning "Final Missile!", three gold-colored missiles launching from her weapons apparatus! For his part, the vampire tried to catch two of the missiles with his hands, only for them to detonate anyway as the last missile nailed him dead-on! "Fire homing laser!" K-Sha cried, a massive red laser firing and hitting her target full force, resulting in a massive mushroom cloud!

"Direct hit! Way to go!" Uni cheered as the EXE drive music faded out... only for 'Black Night' to reassert itself. "Uh-oh, boss theme's still going...!"

**"Not bad,"** Poker's voice spoke, **"but not nearly good enough!"** K-Sha realized the voice was coming from _behind_ her, but too late, getting hit with a megaton punch that sent her flying and skidding along the top of the cliff, losing her Gold Form and going unconscious. **"And as for this thing...!"** The monster grabbed the weapons apparatus that had been left behind, and crushed it into worthless scrap metal with some effort.

"Why you-! TAKE THAT! _EX Multi Blaster!"_ Black Sister cried in anger as she shot a bright blue beam of energy at Poker, who held out his hands to catch the blast, managing to block it with some effort, leaving his hands slightly burnt. The vampire then charged at Uni, only for her to simply fall below his swing, then point her gun up and blast him right between the legs! "Bulls-eye!"

**"Gwoooooohh-!"** Poker screamed in pain as he doubled over, his eyes extremely wide, his minions also grunting in dismay. **"You little bitch...!"** He flew down at the goddess, only for her to rocket up into the air, then swerving to dodge his follow-up.

"You may be fast, but only in a straight line!" Black Sister taunted as she flew and weaved in a three-dimensional pattern to make herself a harder target to hit.

**"I only need to hit you once!"** the monster shot back as he tried to keep up. After a minute, he managed to get close enough to swing again, only for Uni to jump off his head and flip behind him, blasting him in the back! But then Poker flipped backward and fired another mouth beam, forcing the CPU Candidate to block, the blood-sucker then following up with a massive kick which, despite being blocked, sent Uni flying past the cliff's edge and sliding across the ground! She managed to roll with the impact and right herself into a three-point kneeling position, eyes widening as Poker charged at her again, no time to react-

-but then Al was body-checked by Chaos Heart, the tackle sending him off-course, missing Uni and forcing him to roll several times to regain control and stop. "Did you forget me already, worm?!" the bluenette snarked. Pointing her weapon at her foe, she intoned,_ "LIGHT OF ABSOLUTION!"_

Poker gasped and crossed his arms in a blocking position, before he was engulfed in an angry red pillar of light! "Whoa, nice one!" Black Sister said as she instinctively put up a hand and closed an eye from the wind generated by the attack... But then the light faded away, showing Poker's hulking form still intact! "No way...!"

**"Damn you! That HURT!"** the vampire screamed as he charged at Chaos Heart, his body now covered in several burns, the CPU barely blocking the attack with her weapon, though she was sent skidding back several yards!

(Impossible! No one's _ever_ survived that attack before...!) Rei thought in panic as she took to the air again, barely dodging another swing, only to get caught by the monster's tail and sent back to the ground. However, she managed to recover and flip and cartwheel out of the way of another mouth beam, Poker then getting distracted by another blast from Uni, allowing her to get some distance away.

"Give it up, vampire!" another voice called out, Al turning to see Simone Rondo standing a few yards away. "We're obviously too much for you to handle!"

**"You! You're a fool to challenge me, human!"** Poker growled as he floated closer. **"With the power I have gained from Rei Ryghts's blood, I am now invincible and all-powerful!"**

"Some all-powerful," Simone snorted, nonchalantly flipping a lock of her hair, "You can't even kill the lowly vampire hunter!"

Al Poker's eyes widened with rage, raising a fist... **"A problem I mean to rectify... RIGHT NOW!"**

_"SIMONE!"_ Uni screamed as the monster swung- only for the hunter to roll away, Poker's fist instead smashing the jug of holy water, setting his fist aflame!

**"Gaaaahh! Not again! _Damn you!"_** the blood-sucker screamed in pain as he shook his hand frantically to try and extinguish the flames...

_"Now, Lady Noire!"_ Simone yelled, even as Black Sister swooped in and grabbed her out of the danger zone.

**"Huh...?"** Poker looked up to see Lastation's CPU floating in the sky, in her fully-powered NEXT Black form.

"This is your end, vampire!" the next-gen goddess declared, as 'Drive Away' began playing... _"INFINITE SLASH!"_

Poker screamed as he was viciously slashed twelve times over with no time to react or block! **"Arrrggghh! This can't... be happening!"** he roared in agony, several glowing lines on his body where Noire had slashed him!

"Will you just _DIE already?!"_ Chaos Heart yelled in frustration as she fired an energy blast, Simone also smashing the vampire with her morning-star as Uni flew by! The combined attack was finally too much, as Poker's body violently ripped apart into several bloody chunks! The remains were soon consumed by fire, leaving nothing behind but large burn spots on the grass.

"It can't be! The Master has fallen!" a demon gasped in shock and horror, as the undead skeletons and possessed armors began to fall apart.

_"Flee!_ Flee for the caverns! For any dark place you can find!" another demon cried. "Every demon for themselves!" The evil creatures scattered and fled in all directions in abject panic.

"Yeah, that's right! You _better_ run!" Black Sister cried as she took a few potshots at the fleeing monsters. "Cause when we heal up, we're coming after ALL of you!"

"Uni, that's enough," Noire ordered as she powered down to her normal HDD form. "We'll hunt them down soon enough..." Something then occurred to her. "Wait a minute... where is K-Sha at?"

"K-Sha...? Oh no! I forgot!" Uni gasped as she set Simone back on the ground. "Sh-she got punched out by that vampire, and...!"

"I've got her," Rei said as she floated up with the unconscious schoolgirl in her arms. "Just checked her pulse, she's not dead by a long shot... here."

"Thank you, Rei," Black Heart nodded as she took K-Sha from her fellow CPU, gently laying her on the ground. "K-Sha... K-Sha, wake up, it's Noire..."

"Hnnnnghh..." K-Sha groaned as her eyes slowly opened. "Nnnn... Noire...?" Her lips turned upward in a gentle smile. "Oh, Noire... you look so pretty, you're actually shining... agh, too bright!" She squinted from the light shining behind Black Heart's form...

"Wait, that's not Noire, that's...!" Black Sister gasped as she looked up into the sky, the other women following her gaze... seeing a familiar yellow-white ball of light reassert itself in the sky, which slowly returned to its normal blue shade.

"The brilliance of the sun has vanquished the horrible night," Simone stated with a relieved smile. "It's over. We've triumphed."

Hearing this caused the others to relax as a wave of relief washed over them. "Good riddance to bad rubbish," Rei grumbled. "I seriously hope this doesn't end up being the norm _every_ damn time I take a case in Lastation... And I thought that drama with the Dragon Killer was bad enough..." Hearing a rumbling, she looked up to see Poker's castle collapsing into rubble. "Figures. Now that the final boss is dead, his lair self-destructs..."

"Happens all the time," Simone shrugged. "At least I don't usually have to run for my life before the vampire's castle collapses..."

"Well, that's convenient," Black Sister deadpanned.

"I'm just glad to see the sun again..." K-Sha said. "Sorry I wasn't much help against that blood-sucker..."

"It's fine, K-Sha," Simone disagreed. "You did what you could. Even I was surprised at how fast Poker could move, especially at such a large size..."

"I second that. I was barely surviving myself!" Uni concurred. "If it hadn't been for Rei, I would've suffered the same fate..."

"Anyway, let us return to the Basilicom," Noire stated. "Even though the sun has returned, we should still reassure the populace that the danger has passed. Also, we need to nurse K-Sha back to health..."

"Fine by me," K-Sha sighed happily. "Noire's going to give me some tender loving care~"

"Heh..." Simone couldn't help but chuckle. "Lady Noire and K-Sha... Never thought I'd see it happen in a million years..."

"J-just what are you implying?!" Black Heart gasped as her cheeks reddened. "K-Sha and I are just friends! D-don't try to read anything else into it! Anyway, let us return!" With that, she ascended rapidly into the sky before turning and flying back towards the capital city...

"Same old Noire," Uni smiled. "Anyway, could you carry Simone back, Rei? You're stronger than I am in HDD, so..."

"Fine," Chaos Heart assented, wrapping her arms around the blonde, the trio rising into the air. "Just be thankful I did your case _pro bono,_ Rondo, or else I'd be _seriously_ thinking about charging extra! You're welcome, by the way."

"Trust me, you have my deepest gratitude, Rei Ryghts," Simone said with a smile as they flew off...

_To be concluded..._

And so the vampire and eternal night are vanquished! Hope this was worth the wait!


	11. Epilogue

Time to wrap things up...

ON WITH THE SHOW!

Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

Turnabout Of The Night

by Derald Snyder

Epilogue

_November 15, 11:05 AM_

_Paler Sunscreen Industries_

_CEO's Office_

"...So that is vat happened," Vlad Paler mused as Rei and Noire finished their explanation of what had transpired, Simone Rondo standing with them. "To think that janitor vas plotting something so heinous... Vill your friend be all right?"

"K-Sha's a strong girl," Noire stated. "A few days in bed and she'll be back on her feet..."

"Indeed, she always bounced back quickly from injury, from what I remember," Simone agreed. "But the real reason I am here..." the hunter kneeled down and bowed her head. "Mr. Paler, I must apologize from the bottom of my heart for what happened to your brother... I might not have been directly responsible, but I created the circumstances that led to his death. At the very least, I should have gotten help for that man before continuing my pursuit... for that, I am exceedingly sorry."

"Not that I'm trivializing Demitri's death here, but... if it hadn't been for the big stink raised by his murder, Poker might've been able to continue his plans without anyone else being the wiser," Noire mused. "But thanks to Rei and Simone, we were able to nip his 'eternal night' in the bud before it got out of hand..."

"...Indeed," Vlad reluctantly agreed. Taking a deep breath, he then said, "Very vell then, I accept your apology. Vat being said, it vould be vor the best if you never showed your vace around here again..."

"I understand," Simone nodded. "I'm going to be busy helping Lady Noire hunt down the demons that managed to escape into caverns before the sun returned, and after that, I'll likely be heading back to my old stomping grounds in Lowee." She then stood to her feet. "May you and your wife be blessed with a long and prosperous life. Farewell." The hunter then turned and walked out of the office.

"A-as Miss Rondo's lawyer, I th-thank you f-for not b-being t-too unreasonable about th-this," Rei spoke up. "I-if you'll excuse us." The ex-villain quickly turned and followed Simone outside.

"Good luck with your sunscreen business," Noire said as she also turned to leave. "Maybe if Uni and I get some free time and decide to go to the beach, we'll consider buying your product..."

"I vould be greatly humbled and appreciative if you did, Lady Noire," Vlad said with a slight smile. "Good luck vith hunting down the rest of those voul demons..."

"Thanks," the CPU acknowledged as she left...

_November 16_

_Samson & Co. Law Offices_

_Front Desk_

"...Sounds like you had quite the adventure," Bartholomew said as Rei finished her tale. "Probably a bit too much excitement for you, hmm?"

"Oh yes," Rei agreed heartily. "I'm j-just g-glad it's all over with now... Honestly, I was h-half-expecting t-to b-be swamped with a lot of w-work w-when I c-came back..."

"I suppose the powers that be decided to give you a break," her boss stated facetiously. "That being said, the toilet does need to be cleaned again..."

"Ahhh! I c-completely forgot about the t-toilet! I-I'm so very sorry, Mr. Samson! I-I'll g-get on it right away!" Rei promptly dashed to the bathroom, causing Bartholomew to smile and shake his head... Some things never changed.

_Date: ? Time: ?_

_Location: ?_

"...so, is it over?"

"Yes. Vat hunter vill never come around here again, I have made certain of vat."

"Oh, thank goodness... when I first heard about her arrest, I was terrified that it was ME she was after..."

"...tell me something. Did you know? About vhe janitor, I mean?"

"I didn't _know,_ per se... I suspected he might have been one of my kin... but I certainly knew _nothing_ about his plans for eternal night! If I had known, I would done everything in my power to stop him! After all, if the sun never came out again, your sunscreen company would go out of business, among other things! And I wouldn't want my dear Vladdie to suffer like that... Now come here and give your wife some _blood sugar."_

"Oh, Lisa..." Vlad sighed as he let himself be pulled into his wife's embrace, closing his eyes as they kissed deeply, their tongues gently dueling... After a minute or so, Lisa abruptly whirled the two of them around, pinning Vlad to the wall... breaking away from the kiss, she stared into his eyes, her own orbs now glowing a faint blood red... she then opened her jaws as she bowed her head down slightly, her canines suddenly extending in length...

"Ah...!" Vlad cried in mild pain. "Gently... _gently,_ Lisa! You know how hard it is to cover up my neck vounds vith makeup...!"

The vampire wife simply chuckled in response, as she continued to feed on her lover...

~*Fin*~

So were you expecting that final twist? Thanks for reading to the end!


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